Brokerages Set ESAB Co. (NYSE:ESAB) Price Target at $93.75

ESAB Co. (NYSE:ESAB) has been given an average rating of “Moderate Buy” by the eight brokerages that are currently covering the firm, MarketBeat.com reports. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the company. The average 1-year target price among brokers that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $93.75.

Several analysts have commented on the stock. Evercore ISI boosted their price target on shares of ESAB from $93.00 to $100.00 and gave the stock an “in-line” rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 5th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upgraded shares of ESAB from a “neutral” rating to an “overweight” rating and boosted their price target for the stock from $111.00 to $125.00 in a research note on Monday, March 18th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus boosted their price target on shares of ESAB from $106.00 to $114.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, March 1st.

ESAB Stock Down 0.6 %

ESAB opened at $105.79 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.62, a quick ratio of 0.98 and a current ratio of 1.61. ESAB has a fifty-two week low of $55.37 and a fifty-two week high of $114.77. The firm’s fifty day moving average is $102.30 and its 200 day moving average is $87.13. The stock has a market cap of $6.39 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 31.49, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.19 and a beta of 1.54.

ESAB (NYSE:ESAB) last released its earnings results on Thursday, February 29th. The company reported $1.13 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.05 by $0.08. ESAB had a net margin of 7.40% and a return on equity of 17.57%. The company had revenue of $689.40 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $644.51 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $1.05 EPS. ESAB’s revenue for the quarter was up 3.8% on a year-over-year basis. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that ESAB will post 4.82 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

ESAB Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, April 12th. Investors of record on Friday, March 29th were issued a dividend of $0.06 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, March 27th. This represents a $0.24 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.23%. ESAB’s payout ratio is 7.14%.

Insider Activity at ESAB

In related news, Director Didier P. Teirlinck sold 2,512 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, March 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $99.00, for a total transaction of $248,688.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 33,863 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,352,437. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. In other ESAB news, Director Christopher M. Hix sold 7,465 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $99.28, for a total value of $741,125.20. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 33,863 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,361,918.64. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, Director Didier P. Teirlinck sold 2,512 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, March 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $99.00, for a total transaction of $248,688.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 33,863 shares in the company, valued at $3,352,437. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders have sold 10,833 shares of company stock worth $1,074,985. Insiders own 7.00% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On ESAB

Hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd. grew its stake in ESAB by 57.9% in the 4th quarter. Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 420 shares of the company’s stock worth $36,000 after acquiring an additional 154 shares in the last quarter. Johnson Financial Group Inc. purchased a new position in ESAB during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $39,000. Huntington National Bank increased its holdings in ESAB by 55.5% during the third quarter. Huntington National Bank now owns 647 shares of the company’s stock valued at $45,000 after buying an additional 231 shares during the period. Raleigh Capital Management Inc. increased its holdings in ESAB by 23.4% during the third quarter. Raleigh Capital Management Inc. now owns 811 shares of the company’s stock valued at $57,000 after buying an additional 154 shares during the period. Finally, Quantbot Technologies LP purchased a new position in ESAB during the second quarter valued at approximately $46,000. 91.13% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

About ESAB

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.