Intech Investment Management LLC Grows Position in ESCO Technologies Inc. (NYSE:ESE)

Intech Investment Management LLC increased its position in ESCO Technologies Inc. (NYSE:ESE) by 240.2% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 18,824 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock after purchasing an additional 13,290 shares during the quarter. Intech Investment Management LLC’s holdings in ESCO Technologies were worth $2,508,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. State Street Corp lifted its stake in shares of ESCO Technologies by 4.9% in the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 1,054,039 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock valued at $135,950,000 after purchasing an additional 49,577 shares during the period. Loomis Sayles & Co. L P increased its position in ESCO Technologies by 3.3% during the 3rd quarter. Loomis Sayles & Co. L P now owns 438,536 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock valued at $56,563,000 after buying an additional 13,894 shares in the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. increased its position in ESCO Technologies by 2.1% during the 4th quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 306,077 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock valued at $40,773,000 after buying an additional 6,203 shares in the last quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP bought a new position in ESCO Technologies during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $19,412,000. Finally, Principal Financial Group Inc. increased its position in ESCO Technologies by 2.9% during the 4th quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 125,266 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock valued at $16,687,000 after buying an additional 3,562 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 95.70% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts recently weighed in on ESE shares. Benchmark raised their price objective on ESCO Technologies from $150.00 to $190.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 11th. Stephens reaffirmed an “overweight” rating and set a $175.00 price objective on shares of ESCO Technologies in a research report on Thursday, February 27th. Finally, StockNews.com lowered ESCO Technologies from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday.

ESCO Technologies Price Performance

NYSE ESE opened at $161.22 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $4.16 billion, a PE ratio of 37.84 and a beta of 1.11. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.07, a quick ratio of 1.35 and a current ratio of 2.04. The business’s fifty day moving average is $149.93 and its 200 day moving average is $138.51. ESCO Technologies Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $97.11 and a fifty-two week high of $171.28.

ESCO Technologies (NYSE:ESE) last released its earnings results on Thursday, February 6th. The scientific and technical instruments company reported $1.07 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.73 by $0.34. ESCO Technologies had a return on equity of 9.91% and a net margin of 10.44%. Sell-side analysts predict that ESCO Technologies Inc. will post 5.65 earnings per share for the current year.

ESCO Technologies Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, April 17th. Investors of record on Wednesday, April 2nd will be given a dividend of $0.08 per share. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, April 2nd. This represents a $0.32 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.20%. ESCO Technologies’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 7.51%.

ESCO Technologies 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.