ESCO Technologies Inc. (NYSE:ESE) Short Interest Update

ESCO Technologies Inc. (NYSE:ESE) was the recipient of a large growth in short interest during the month of December. As of December 15th, there was short interest totalling 287,400 shares, a growth of 5.5% from the November 30th total of 272,300 shares. Currently, 1.1% of the company’s stock are sold short. Based on an average trading volume of 111,400 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 2.6 days.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in ESE. First Horizon Advisors Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of ESCO Technologies by 20.9% in the third quarter. First Horizon Advisors Inc. now owns 411 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock worth $53,000 after acquiring an additional 71 shares during the period. HighTower Advisors LLC increased its position in shares of ESCO Technologies by 5.3% during the third quarter. HighTower Advisors LLC now owns 2,477 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock valued at $320,000 after buying an additional 124 shares during the period. Arizona State Retirement System increased its position in shares of ESCO Technologies by 1.8% during the second quarter. Arizona State Retirement System now owns 7,222 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock valued at $759,000 after buying an additional 130 shares during the period. GAMMA Investing LLC boosted its position in shares of 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 valued at $60,000 after acquiring an additional 141 shares during the period. Finally, Signaturefd LLC grew its stake in ESCO Technologies by 17.9% during the third quarter. Signaturefd LLC now owns 990 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock valued at $128,000 after acquiring an additional 150 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 95.70% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

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

ESCO Technologies Stock Performance

NYSE ESE opened at $133.21 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.08, a quick ratio of 1.31 and a current ratio of 1.91. The company has a market capitalization of $3.44 billion, a PE ratio of 33.81 and a beta of 1.11. ESCO Technologies has a 52-week low of $96.69 and a 52-week high of $154.00. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $139.63 and a 200 day simple moving average of $125.36.

ESCO Technologies Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, January 17th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, January 2nd will be given a $0.08 dividend. This represents a $0.32 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.24%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, January 2nd. ESCO Technologies’s dividend payout ratio is currently 8.12%.

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.