Principal Financial Group Inc. Has $18.79 Million Stake in ESAB Co. (NYSE:ESAB)

Principal Financial Group Inc. reduced its holdings in ESAB Co. (NYSE:ESAB) by 20.8% during the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 199,014 shares of the company’s stock after selling 52,216 shares during the period. Principal Financial Group Inc. owned 0.33% of ESAB worth $18,793,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Whittier Trust Co. increased its position in shares of ESAB by 302.6% in the first quarter. Whittier Trust Co. now owns 314 shares of the company’s stock valued at $35,000 after acquiring an additional 236 shares during the last quarter. ORG Partners LLC acquired a new position in shares of ESAB during the 1st quarter worth approximately $35,000. Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd. raised its stake in shares of ESAB by 57.9% during the 4th quarter. Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 420 shares of the company’s stock worth $36,000 after purchasing an additional 154 shares in the last quarter. Johnson Financial Group Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of ESAB in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $39,000. Finally, Ridgewood Investments LLC bought a new position in shares of ESAB in the second quarter valued at $92,000. 91.13% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

ESAB Price Performance

ESAB stock opened at $98.34 on Wednesday. The company has a market capitalization of $5.94 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 25.74, a PEG ratio of 1.82 and a beta of 1.42. The stock’s 50 day moving average is $97.85 and its 200-day moving average is $101.25. The company has a current ratio of 1.86, a quick ratio of 1.21 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.62. ESAB Co. has a 12 month low of $61.43 and a 12 month high of $114.77.

ESAB (NYSE:ESAB) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Friday, August 2nd. The company reported $1.32 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.27 by $0.05. The firm had revenue of $707.10 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $686.75 million. ESAB had a return on equity of 17.49% and a net margin of 9.06%. The company’s quarterly revenue was down 1.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $1.21 EPS. Equities research analysts expect that ESAB Co. will post 4.84 EPS for the current year.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several analysts have issued reports on the stock. Evercore ISI dropped their price target on shares of ESAB from $107.00 to $102.00 and set an “in-line” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, August 19th. Bank of America raised their target price on shares of ESAB from $115.00 to $130.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, August 5th. Stifel Nicolaus lowered their price target on ESAB from $130.00 to $120.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, July 18th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price objective on ESAB from $125.00 to $120.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, August 5th. Finally, Oppenheimer assumed coverage on ESAB in a research note on Thursday, June 20th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $115.00 price target on the stock. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, ESAB presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $108.57.

ESAB Profile

ESAB Corporation engages in the formulation, development, manufacture, and supply of consumable products and equipment for use in cutting, joining, automated welding, and gas control equipment. Its comprehensive range of welding consumables includes electrodes, cored and solid wires, and fluxes using a range of specialty and other materials; and cutting consumables comprising electrodes, nozzles, shields, and tips.