ESAB (NYSE:ESAB) Sets New 52-Week Low – Should You Sell?

ESAB Corporation (NYSE:ESAB) reached a new 52-week low during trading on Thursday . The stock traded as low as $83.17 and last traded at $90.3740, with a volume of 759347 shares traded. The stock had previously closed at $84.46.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms recently commented on ESAB. Jefferies Financial Group reiterated a “buy” rating and set a $130.00 price objective (down from $150.00) on shares of ESAB in a research note on Tuesday, March 31st. Wall Street Zen lowered shares of ESAB from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Saturday, March 21st. DA Davidson reduced their price objective on shares of ESAB from $146.00 to $142.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, April 16th. Stifel Nicolaus set a $141.00 price objective on shares of ESAB in a research note on Friday, May 8th. Finally, Roth Mkm set a $142.00 price target on shares of ESAB in a research note on Thursday, April 16th. Eight analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $139.88.

ESAB Price Performance

The firm’s fifty day moving average price is $98.46 and its 200 day moving average price is $110.76. The firm has a market capitalization of $5.50 billion, a PE ratio of 26.74, a P/E/G ratio of 1.55 and a beta of 1.24. The company has a current ratio of 2.97, a quick ratio of 2.26 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.91.

ESAB (NYSE:ESAB) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, May 7th. The company reported $1.31 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.32 by ($0.01). ESAB had a return on equity of 15.04% and a net margin of 7.11%.The firm had revenue of $745.60 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $706.74 million. During the same period last year, the company posted $1.25 earnings per share. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 10.0% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities analysts forecast that ESAB Corporation will post 5.81 earnings per share for the current year.

ESAB Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, July 17th. Shareholders of record on Friday, July 3rd will be given a dividend of $0.12 per share. This is a boost from ESAB’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.10. This represents a $0.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.5%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, July 2nd. ESAB’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 14.20%.

Insider Activity at ESAB

In other news, CEO Shyam Kambeyanda sold 59,404 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $123.79, for a total value of $7,353,621.16. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 99,864 shares in the company, valued at $12,362,164.56. This represents a 37.30% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. 7.20% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On ESAB

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of ESAB. Diamond Hill Capital Management Inc. boosted its stake in shares of ESAB by 8.3% during the 3rd quarter. Diamond Hill Capital Management Inc. now owns 168,668 shares of the company’s stock valued at $18,847,000 after buying an additional 12,894 shares during the period. Van Berkom & Associates Inc. grew its holdings in shares of ESAB by 28.6% during the 3rd quarter. Van Berkom & Associates Inc. now owns 716,405 shares of the company’s stock valued at $80,051,000 after acquiring an additional 159,539 shares in the last quarter. Confluence Investment Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of ESAB during the 4th quarter valued at $998,000. Defender Capital LLC. purchased a new position in shares of ESAB during the 4th quarter valued at $3,977,000. Finally, Oppenheimer & Co. Inc. purchased a new position in shares of ESAB during the 3rd quarter valued at $1,126,000. 91.13% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

ESAB Company Profile

ESAB Corporation is a global leader in welding, cutting and gas control technologies, offering a comprehensive portfolio of equipment, consumables and automation solutions. The company’s products include welding power sources, cutting machines, torches, electrodes, filler metals and gas regulating equipment designed to meet the needs of diverse industries. ESAB serves sectors such as construction, shipbuilding, automotive, energy, infrastructure and manufacturing, providing both standard and customized solutions to enhance productivity and quality in metal fabrication and processing.

Founded in 1904 by Swedish inventor Oscar Kjellberg, ESAB pioneered the development of coated welding electrodes, laying the groundwork for modern welding practices.