ESCO Technologies Inc. (NYSE:ESE) Announces $0.08 Quarterly Dividend

ESCO Technologies Inc. (NYSE:ESE) announced a quarterly dividend on Thursday, February 8th, Zacks reports. Investors of record on Monday, April 1st will be given a dividend of 0.08 per share by the scientific and technical instruments company on Tuesday, April 16th. This represents a $0.32 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.31%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, March 28th.

ESCO Technologies has a dividend payout ratio of 6.7% meaning its dividend is sufficiently covered by earnings. Analysts expect ESCO Technologies to earn $4.79 per share next year, which means the company should continue to be able to cover its $0.32 annual dividend with an expected future payout ratio of 6.7%.

ESCO Technologies Stock Performance

NYSE:ESE opened at $103.16 on Wednesday. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $101.97 and its 200 day moving average is $104.14. ESCO Technologies has a fifty-two week low of $89.77 and a fifty-two week high of $118.60. The firm has a market capitalization of $2.66 billion, a PE ratio of 28.66 and a beta of 1.14. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.13, a quick ratio of 1.31 and a current ratio of 1.98.

ESCO Technologies (NYSE:ESE) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 8th. The scientific and technical instruments company reported $0.62 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.67 by ($0.05). ESCO Technologies had a net margin of 9.60% and a return on equity of 8.59%. The company had revenue of $218.30 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $221.44 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $0.60 EPS. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 6.2% on a year-over-year basis. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that ESCO Technologies will post 4.2 earnings per share for the current year.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts have commented on ESE shares. StockNews.com downgraded ESCO Technologies from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Saturday, February 17th. Sidoti downgraded ESCO Technologies from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, January 5th.

Insider Buying and Selling at ESCO Technologies

In other news, Director Leon J. Olivier sold 900 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, March 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $100.26, for a total transaction of $90,234.00. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. 0.80% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On ESCO Technologies

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in ESE. Advisor Group Holdings Inc. grew its position in shares of ESCO Technologies by 45.6% during the 1st quarter. Advisor Group Holdings Inc. now owns 2,265 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock worth $158,000 after buying an additional 709 shares in the last quarter. Citigroup Inc. boosted its position in ESCO Technologies by 19.6% during the first quarter. Citigroup Inc. now owns 24,387 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock valued at $1,705,000 after purchasing an additional 4,005 shares in the last quarter. MetLife Investment Management LLC boosted its position in ESCO Technologies by 54.4% during the first quarter. MetLife Investment Management LLC now owns 13,675 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock valued at $956,000 after purchasing an additional 4,820 shares in the last quarter. Rhumbline Advisers boosted its position in ESCO Technologies by 1.0% during the first quarter. Rhumbline Advisers now owns 74,783 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock valued at $5,229,000 after purchasing an additional 728 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Commonwealth of Pennsylvania Public School Empls Retrmt SYS boosted its position in ESCO Technologies by 13.8% during the first quarter. Commonwealth of Pennsylvania Public School Empls Retrmt SYS now owns 22,408 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock valued at $1,567,000 after purchasing an additional 2,711 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 95.70% of the company’s stock.

ESCO Technologies Company 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.