State Street Corp Raises Stock Position in ESCO Technologies Inc. (NYSE:ESE)

State Street Corp grew its holdings in ESCO Technologies Inc. (NYSE:ESE) by 4.9% in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 1,054,039 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock after purchasing an additional 49,577 shares during the quarter. State Street Corp owned 4.09% of ESCO Technologies worth $135,950,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in ESE. First Horizon Advisors Inc. acquired a new stake in ESCO Technologies in the 2nd quarter valued at about $36,000. Innealta Capital LLC acquired a new stake in ESCO Technologies in the second quarter valued at approximately $50,000. GAMMA Investing LLC lifted its stake in ESCO Technologies by 43.0% in the third quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 469 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock worth $60,000 after acquiring an additional 141 shares during the last quarter. Signaturefd LLC lifted its stake in ESCO Technologies by 17.9% in the third quarter. Signaturefd LLC now owns 990 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock worth $128,000 after acquiring an additional 150 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Intech Investment Management LLC acquired a new position in ESCO Technologies during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $205,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 95.70% of the company’s stock.

ESCO Technologies Trading Down 1.6 %

Shares of ESCO Technologies stock opened at $140.07 on Friday. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $137.09 and a 200-day simple moving average of $122.82. ESCO Technologies Inc. has a 12-month low of $96.69 and a 12-month high of $154.00. The company has a current ratio of 1.91, a quick ratio of 1.31 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.08. The stock has a market cap of $3.61 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 35.55 and a beta of 1.11.

ESCO Technologies Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, January 17th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, January 2nd will be given a dividend of $0.08 per share. This represents a $0.32 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.23%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, January 2nd. ESCO Technologies’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 8.12%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

ESE has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. Benchmark reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $150.00 price objective on shares of ESCO Technologies in a research report on Friday, November 15th. StockNews.com raised ESCO Technologies from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Friday. Finally, Stephens raised their target price on ESCO Technologies from $135.00 to $145.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, September 27th.

ESCO Technologies Company Profile

ESCO Technologies Inc produces and supplies engineered products and systems for industrial and commercial markets worldwide. It operates through three segments: Aerospace & Defense, Utility Solutions Group, and RF Test & Measurement. The Aerospace & Defense segment designs and manufactures filtration products, including hydraulic filter elements and fluid control devices used in commercial aerospace applications; filter mechanisms used in micro-propulsion devices for satellites; and custom designed filters for manned aircraft and submarines.