ESAB (NYSE:ESAB) Trading Down 6.9% – Time to Sell?

ESAB Corporation (NYSE:ESAB)’s stock price dropped 6.9% during mid-day trading on Wednesday . The company traded as low as $86.91 and last traded at $87.50. Approximately 296,780 shares traded hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 52% from the average session volume of 620,603 shares. The stock had previously closed at $94.02.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages have recently commented on ESAB. Oppenheimer reiterated an “outperform” rating and set a $140.00 price target on shares of ESAB in a report on Tuesday, April 14th. Jefferies Financial Group restated a “buy” rating and set a $130.00 target price (down from $150.00) on shares of ESAB in a research report on Tuesday, March 31st. DA Davidson assumed coverage on shares of ESAB in a research note on Monday, June 15th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $130.00 target price for the company. Weiss Ratings lowered ESAB from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “hold (c)” rating in a research note on Monday, April 27th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus set a $141.00 price objective on ESAB in a research report on Friday, May 8th. Eight investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $139.50.

ESAB Stock Up 2.5%

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.91, a current ratio of 2.97 and a quick ratio of 2.26. The company has a market cap of $5.45 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 26.48, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.59 and a beta of 1.17. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $94.15 and its 200-day moving average price is $106.27.

ESAB (NYSE:ESAB) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, May 7th. The company reported $1.31 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.32 by ($0.01). ESAB had a net margin of 7.11% and a return on equity of 15.04%. The company had revenue of $745.60 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $706.74 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $1.25 earnings per share. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 10.0% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts forecast that ESAB Corporation will post 5.8 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

ESAB Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, July 17th. Investors of record on Friday, July 3rd will be paid a $0.12 dividend. This represents a $0.48 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.5%. This is a positive change from ESAB’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.10. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, July 2nd. ESAB’s payout ratio is presently 14.20%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. FNY Investment Advisers LLC bought a new position in shares of ESAB during the third quarter worth about $30,000. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of ESAB during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $33,000. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. grew its stake in shares of ESAB by 109.4% in the second quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. now owns 333 shares of the company’s stock worth $40,000 after purchasing an additional 174 shares in the last quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC increased its stake in ESAB by 259.4% during the 4th quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 381 shares of the company’s stock valued at $43,000 after buying an additional 275 shares during the period. Finally, Global Retirement Partners LLC increased its stake in shares of ESAB by 3,023.1% during the fourth quarter. Global Retirement Partners LLC now owns 406 shares of the company’s stock valued at $45,000 after acquiring an additional 393 shares during the period. 91.13% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

About ESAB

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.