ESCO Technologies (NYSE:ESE) Stock Rating Upgraded by StockNews.com

StockNews.com upgraded shares of ESCO Technologies (NYSE:ESE) from a hold rating to a buy rating in a research report released on Tuesday morning.

Several other equities analysts also recently issued reports on the stock. Stephens upped their price objective on shares of ESCO Technologies from $135.00 to $145.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, September 27th. Benchmark restated a “buy” rating and set a $150.00 price objective on shares of ESCO Technologies in a report on Friday, November 15th.

ESCO Technologies Trading Up 1.3 %

Shares of ESE stock opened at $137.39 on Tuesday. The company has a market capitalization of $3.54 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 34.87 and a beta of 1.11. 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 firm has a 50-day moving average price of $138.92 and a 200 day moving average price of $124.37. ESCO Technologies has a twelve month low of $96.69 and a twelve month high of $154.00.

ESCO Technologies Dividend Announcement

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

Institutional Investors Weigh In On ESCO Technologies

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP raised its position in ESCO Technologies by 1.2% in the second quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 1,372,850 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock valued at $144,204,000 after purchasing an additional 16,152 shares during the period. State Street Corp raised its holdings in shares of ESCO Technologies by 4.9% during 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 buying an additional 49,577 shares during the period. Conestoga Capital Advisors LLC lifted its position in ESCO Technologies by 1.8% during the 3rd quarter. Conestoga Capital Advisors LLC now owns 1,047,741 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock worth $135,138,000 after acquiring an additional 18,676 shares in the last quarter. Loomis Sayles & Co. L P boosted its holdings in ESCO Technologies by 3.3% in the 3rd quarter. Loomis Sayles & Co. L P now owns 438,536 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock worth $56,563,000 after acquiring an additional 13,894 shares during the period. Finally, Select Equity Group L.P. grew its position in ESCO Technologies by 277.5% in the second quarter. Select Equity Group L.P. now owns 395,460 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock valued at $41,539,000 after acquiring an additional 290,711 shares in the last quarter. 95.70% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About ESCO Technologies

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.