KLP Kapitalforvaltning AS Acquires Shares of 12,033 ESAB Co. (NYSE:ESAB)

KLP Kapitalforvaltning AS acquired a new position in ESAB Co. (NYSE:ESAB) in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund acquired 12,033 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,444,000.

Several other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of ESAB. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC increased its stake in shares of ESAB by 70.3% in the 4th quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 218 shares of the company’s stock valued at $26,000 after buying an additional 90 shares during the period. ORG Wealth Partners LLC bought a new position in ESAB in the fourth quarter valued at about $34,000. Trust Co. of Vermont increased its position in ESAB by 871.0% in the fourth quarter. Trust Co. of Vermont now owns 301 shares of the company’s stock worth $36,000 after purchasing an additional 270 shares during the period. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. bought a new stake in ESAB during the 4th quarter worth about $36,000. Finally, Quest Partners LLC lifted its position in ESAB by 12,140.0% during the 3rd quarter. Quest Partners LLC now owns 612 shares of the company’s stock valued at $65,000 after purchasing an additional 607 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 91.13% of the company’s stock.

ESAB Trading Down 3.1 %

ESAB opened at $115.92 on Friday. The firm’s fifty day moving average is $122.69 and its two-hundred day moving average is $119.50. The firm has a market cap of $7.02 billion, a PE ratio of 26.83, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.01 and a beta of 1.36. ESAB Co. has a twelve month low of $88.54 and a twelve month high of $135.97. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.59, a quick ratio of 1.25 and a current ratio of 1.82.

ESAB (NYSE:ESAB) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, February 20th. The company reported $1.28 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.15 by $0.13. ESAB had a return on equity of 17.43% and a net margin of 9.66%. The firm had revenue of $633.20 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $636.43 million. Equities research analysts anticipate that ESAB Co. will post 5.16 EPS for the current year.

ESAB Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, April 17th. Investors of record on Friday, April 4th will be paid a dividend of $0.08 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, April 4th. This represents a $0.32 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.28%. ESAB’s payout ratio is 7.41%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

ESAB has been the subject of several analyst reports. Stifel Nicolaus lowered their price target on shares of ESAB from $131.00 to $125.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, February 21st. Evercore ISI raised shares of ESAB from an “underperform” rating to an “inline” rating and lowered their target price for the stock from $122.00 to $120.00 in a report on Monday, February 24th. Jefferies Financial Group started coverage on shares of ESAB in a research report on Thursday, December 12th. They set a “buy” rating and a $160.00 target price for the company. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price target on ESAB from $133.00 to $140.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, March 18th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $134.14.

ESAB Company Profile

ESAB Corporation engages in the formulation, development, manufacture, and supply of consumable products and equipment for use in cutting, joining, automated welding, and gas control equipment. Its comprehensive range of welding consumables includes electrodes, cored and solid wires, and fluxes using a range of specialty and other materials; and cutting consumables comprising electrodes, nozzles, shields, and tips.