ESAB Corporation (NYSE:ESAB) Sees Significant Growth in Short Interest
by Kim Johansen · The Markets DailyESAB Corporation (NYSE:ESAB – Get Free Report) was the recipient of a large increase in short interest in the month of February. As of February 13th, there was short interest totaling 1,590,522 shares, an increase of 22.1% from the January 29th total of 1,302,948 shares. Approximately 2.8% of the shares of the company are sold short. Based on an average trading volume of 780,254 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 2.0 days. Based on an average trading volume of 780,254 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 2.0 days. Approximately 2.8% of the shares of the company are sold short.
Insider Transactions at ESAB
In other ESAB news, CEO Shyam Kambeyanda sold 59,404 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $123.79, for a total transaction of $7,353,621.16. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 99,864 shares in the company, valued at $12,362,164.56. This trade represents a 37.30% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. 7.30% of the stock is owned by company insiders.
Institutional Trading of ESAB
Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of ESAB. T. Rowe Price Investment Management Inc. grew its position in ESAB by 0.6% in the fourth quarter. T. Rowe Price Investment Management Inc. now owns 8,006,238 shares of the company’s stock valued at $894,457,000 after acquiring an additional 45,841 shares during the last quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD grew its holdings in shares of ESAB by 11.7% during the 4th quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 5,852,692 shares of the company’s stock valued at $653,864,000 after purchasing an additional 613,327 shares during the last quarter. Invesco Ltd. increased its position in ESAB by 1.6% during the 2nd quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 2,123,958 shares of the company’s stock worth $256,043,000 after purchasing an additional 33,015 shares in the last quarter. Champlain Investment Partners LLC lifted its stake in ESAB by 5.9% in the 2nd quarter. Champlain Investment Partners LLC now owns 2,043,843 shares of the company’s stock valued at $246,385,000 after purchasing an additional 114,744 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Durable Capital Partners LP boosted its position in ESAB by 40.5% in the third quarter. Durable Capital Partners LP now owns 1,945,854 shares of the company’s stock valued at $217,430,000 after buying an additional 560,678 shares in the last quarter. 91.13% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.
Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades
Several analysts recently issued reports on the company. Wall Street Zen downgraded ESAB from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Sunday, December 28th. Roth Mkm reissued a “buy” rating and set a $146.00 target price (down from $150.00) on shares of ESAB in a report on Tuesday, February 3rd. Oppenheimer boosted their target price on shares of ESAB from $142.00 to $148.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, January 23rd. Stifel Nicolaus raised their price target on shares of ESAB from $144.00 to $158.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, February 23rd. Finally, Weiss Ratings cut shares of ESAB from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “hold (c+)” rating in a research note on Friday, February 20th. Six analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $145.25.
Get Our Latest Research Report on ESAB
ESAB Price Performance
ESAB stock traded down $5.12 during midday trading on Tuesday, reaching $116.52. The company had a trading volume of 397,411 shares, compared to its average volume of 452,830. ESAB has a 1-year low of $100.17 and a 1-year high of $137.42. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $122.09 and a 200-day moving average price of $116.77. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.56, a current ratio of 1.90 and a quick ratio of 1.17. The company has a market capitalization of $7.08 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 31.49, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.33 and a beta of 1.24.
ESAB (NYSE:ESAB – Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Friday, February 20th. The company reported $1.35 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.34 by $0.01. The firm had revenue of $720.99 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $687.80 million. ESAB had a net margin of 7.98% and a return on equity of 15.38%. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 7.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the firm earned $1.28 EPS. Equities research analysts expect that ESAB will post 5.16 earnings per share for the current year.
ESAB Announces Dividend
The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, April 17th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, April 2nd will be paid a dividend of $0.10 per share. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, April 2nd. This represents a $0.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.3%. ESAB’s dividend payout ratio is presently 10.81%.
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.