ESCO Technologies Inc. (NYSE:ESE) Shares Bought by HighTower Advisors LLC

HighTower Advisors LLC raised its holdings in shares of ESCO Technologies Inc. (NYSE:ESE) by 215.4% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 7,813 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock after buying an additional 5,336 shares during the period. HighTower Advisors LLC’s holdings in ESCO Technologies were worth $1,041,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in ESE. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank boosted its stake in shares of ESCO Technologies by 27.6% during the 4th quarter. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank now owns 6,775 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock worth $902,000 after acquiring an additional 1,464 shares in the last quarter. AlphaQuest LLC boosted its position in shares of ESCO Technologies by 102,833.3% in the 4th quarter. AlphaQuest LLC now owns 3,088 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock valued at $411,000 after purchasing an additional 3,085 shares during the period. Edgestream Partners L.P. purchased a new position in ESCO Technologies in the 4th quarter worth about $1,170,000. Atria Investments Inc acquired a new stake in ESCO Technologies during the 4th quarter worth about $267,000. Finally, Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. lifted its stake in ESCO Technologies by 2.1% during the fourth 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. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 95.70% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts recently commented on ESE shares. Stephens restated an “overweight” rating and issued a $175.00 price target on shares of ESCO Technologies in a research report on Thursday, February 27th. StockNews.com cut ESCO Technologies from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, March 21st. Finally, Benchmark upped their price target on ESCO Technologies from $150.00 to $190.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 11th.

ESCO Technologies Stock Performance

Shares of ESE opened at $160.26 on Thursday. The company has a market capitalization of $4.14 billion, a PE ratio of 37.62 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 company’s 50 day moving average price is $152.47 and its 200 day moving average price is $139.98. ESCO Technologies Inc. has a 52 week low of $97.11 and a 52 week high of $171.28.

ESCO Technologies (NYSE:ESE) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, February 6th. The scientific and technical instruments company reported $1.07 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.73 by $0.34. ESCO Technologies had a return on equity of 9.91% and a net margin of 10.44%. Research analysts expect that ESCO Technologies Inc. will post 5.65 EPS for the current fiscal year.

ESCO Technologies Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, April 17th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, April 2nd will be issued a dividend of $0.08 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, April 2nd. This represents a $0.32 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.20%. ESCO Technologies’s dividend payout ratio is currently 7.51%.

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.