Federated Hermes Inc. Has $28.17 Million Stake in ESCO Technologies Inc. $ESE

Federated Hermes Inc. reduced its holdings in shares of ESCO Technologies Inc. (NYSE:ESE) by 2.5% in the third quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund owned 133,437 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock after selling 3,467 shares during the quarter. Federated Hermes Inc.’s holdings in ESCO Technologies were worth $28,170,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. AQR Capital Management LLC increased its stake in shares of ESCO Technologies by 60.5% in the 1st 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 acquiring an additional 2,896 shares in the last quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. raised its holdings in shares of ESCO Technologies by 4.5% during the first quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 15,399 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock valued at $2,450,000 after purchasing an additional 664 shares during the period. Dynamic Technology Lab Private Ltd acquired a new stake in shares of ESCO Technologies in the 1st quarter valued at about $228,000. United Services Automobile Association bought a new stake in ESCO Technologies in the 1st quarter valued at about $261,000. Finally, UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC increased its position in ESCO Technologies by 19.8% in the 1st 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 buying an additional 13,648 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 95.70% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts have recently commented on the company. CJS Securities upgraded ESCO Technologies to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Thursday, December 11th. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of ESCO Technologies from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Saturday, December 6th. Weiss Ratings raised shares of ESCO Technologies from a “buy (b+)” rating to a “buy (a-)” rating in a research note on Tuesday. Finally, Zacks Research upgraded shares of ESCO Technologies to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, December 16th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, two have given a Buy rating and one has assigned a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, ESCO Technologies has a consensus rating of “Buy” and a consensus target price of $187.50.

Insider Buying and Selling at ESCO Technologies

In other ESCO Technologies news, CFO Christopher L. Tucker sold 5,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, November 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $220.15, for a total transaction of $1,100,750.00. Following the sale, the chief financial officer owned 20,121 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,429,638.15. The trade was a 19.90% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, Director Vinod M. Khilnani sold 3,000 shares of ESCO Technologies stock in a transaction on Wednesday, November 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $217.99, for a total value of $653,970.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 20,468 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,461,819.32. This trade represents a 12.78% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders have sold 21,699 shares of company stock worth $4,778,734 over the last three months. Company insiders own 0.70% of the company’s stock.

ESCO Technologies Trading Down 0.6%

Shares of ESCO Technologies stock opened at $228.55 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $5.91 billion, a PE ratio of 19.79 and a beta of 1.23. ESCO Technologies Inc. has a 1 year low of $128.59 and a 1 year high of $231.64. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.11, a current ratio of 1.35 and a quick ratio of 0.93. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $208.87 and a 200-day moving average price of $206.82.

ESCO Technologies (NYSE:ESE) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, November 20th. The scientific and technical instruments company reported $2.32 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.13 by $0.19. ESCO Technologies had a net margin of 25.76% and a return on equity of 12.21%. The company had revenue of $286.50 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $306.39 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $1.46 EPS. ESCO Technologies’s revenue was up 28.9% on a year-over-year basis. ESCO Technologies has set its Q1 2026 guidance at 1.250-1.350 EPS and its FY 2026 guidance at 7.500-7.800 EPS. Equities research analysts anticipate that ESCO Technologies Inc. will post 5.65 EPS for the current year.

ESCO Technologies Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, January 16th. Shareholders of record on Friday, January 2nd were given a dividend of $0.08 per share. This represents a $0.32 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.1%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, January 2nd. ESCO Technologies’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 2.77%.

ESCO Technologies Company 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.