Maryland State Retirement & Pension System Sells 66 Shares of ESCO Technologies Inc. (NYSE:ESE)

Maryland State Retirement & Pension System trimmed its stake in shares of ESCO Technologies Inc. (NYSE:ESE) by 0.8% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 8,631 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock after selling 66 shares during the quarter. Maryland State Retirement & Pension System’s holdings in ESCO Technologies were worth $1,150,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the stock. State Street Corp grew its position in ESCO Technologies by 4.9% during the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 1,054,039 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock worth $135,950,000 after acquiring an additional 49,577 shares during the last quarter. Loomis Sayles & Co. L P grew its position in shares of ESCO Technologies by 3.3% in the 3rd quarter. Loomis Sayles & Co. L P now owns 438,536 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock worth $56,563,000 after buying an additional 13,894 shares during the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. grew its position in shares of ESCO Technologies by 2.1% in the 4th quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 306,077 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock worth $40,773,000 after buying an additional 6,203 shares during the last quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP bought a new stake in shares of ESCO Technologies in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $19,412,000. Finally, Principal Financial Group Inc. grew its position in shares of ESCO Technologies by 2.9% in the 4th quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 125,266 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock worth $16,687,000 after buying an additional 3,562 shares during the last quarter. 95.70% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

ESE has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. StockNews.com lowered ESCO Technologies from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday. Benchmark lifted their price objective on ESCO Technologies from $150.00 to $190.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 11th. Finally, Stephens reiterated an “overweight” rating and issued a $175.00 price objective on shares of ESCO Technologies in a research report on Thursday, February 27th.

ESCO Technologies Trading Down 1.6 %

ESE opened at $158.92 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $4.10 billion, a PE ratio of 37.31 and a beta of 1.11. The company has a quick ratio of 1.35, a current ratio of 2.04 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.07. The business has a 50 day moving average of $150.54 and a 200-day moving average of $138.95. ESCO Technologies Inc. has a 52 week low of $97.11 and a 52 week high of $171.28.

ESCO Technologies (NYSE:ESE) last released 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%. Equities research analysts predict that ESCO Technologies Inc. will post 5.65 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

ESCO Technologies Announces Dividend

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