Legal & General Group Plc Buys New Position in ESCO Technologies Inc. $ESE

Legal & General Group Plc purchased a new position in shares of ESCO Technologies Inc. (NYSE:ESE) in the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor purchased 59,316 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock, valued at approximately $20,763,000.

Several other large investors have also bought and sold shares of the stock. AQR Capital Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of ESCO Technologies by 60.5% in the first quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 7,683 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock valued at $1,223,000 after purchasing an additional 2,896 shares during the last quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. boosted its stake in shares of ESCO Technologies by 4.5% in the 1st quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 15,399 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock worth $2,450,000 after buying an additional 664 shares during the last quarter. Dynamic Technology Lab Private Ltd purchased a new position in shares of ESCO Technologies in the 1st quarter worth approximately $228,000. United Services Automobile Association bought a new position in shares of ESCO Technologies in the first quarter valued at approximately $261,000. Finally, UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC increased its position in shares of ESCO Technologies by 19.8% during the first quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC now owns 82,500 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock valued at $13,127,000 after acquiring an additional 13,648 shares during the last quarter. 95.70% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

ESE has been the subject of a number of recent analyst reports. Wall Street Zen downgraded ESCO Technologies from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Saturday, May 9th. Weiss Ratings cut ESCO Technologies from a “buy (a-)” rating to a “buy (b)” rating in a research note on Tuesday. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $413.00 price target on shares of ESCO Technologies in a report on Monday, August 10th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. assumed coverage on shares of ESCO Technologies in a research report on Monday, June 15th. They set an “overweight” rating and a $420.00 price target for the company. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, three have assigned a Buy rating and one has given a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus target price of $416.50.

ESCO Technologies Stock Performance

Shares of ESE stock opened at $277.32 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $7.19 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.84, a PEG ratio of 1.59 and a beta of 1.10. The company has a current ratio of 1.38, a quick ratio of 0.94 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.04. The firm’s 50 day moving average is $318.15 and its 200 day moving average is $302.61. ESCO Technologies Inc. has a 12 month low of $193.68 and a 12 month high of $362.15.

ESCO Technologies (NYSE:ESE) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, August 6th. The scientific and technical instruments company reported $2.20 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.12 by $0.08. ESCO Technologies had a net margin of 24.39% and a return on equity of 13.28%. The business had revenue of $339.03 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $341.40 million. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $1.60 EPS. ESCO Technologies’s revenue was up 14.4% compared to the same quarter last year. ESCO Technologies has set its FY 2026 guidance at 8.300-8.400 EPS and its Q4 2026 guidance at 2.550-2.650 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that ESCO Technologies Inc. will post 8.35 earnings per share for the current year.

ESCO Technologies Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, October 15th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, October 1st will be paid a $0.08 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, October 1st. This represents a $0.32 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.1%. ESCO Technologies’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 2.64%.

ESCO Technologies Profile

ESCO Technologies Inc is a diversified manufacturer of engineered products and systems designed to meet customers’ critical performance requirements in the test, measurement, control, and filtration of data, fluids, and gases. The company serves a wide range of end markets, including commercial aerospace, defense, industrial, medical, and communication network sectors. ESCO’s solutions are tailored to environments where reliability, precision and regulatory compliance are paramount.

Operating through multiple business segments, ESCO Technologies delivers test and measurement instruments such as RF and microwave components, signal distribution systems, and integrated test enclosures that support defense and aerospace programs.