Espey Mfg. & Electronics (NYSEAMERICAN:ESP) Lowered to “Hold” Rating by Freedom Capital

Freedom Capital cut shares of Espey Mfg. & Electronics (NYSEAMERICAN:ESP) from a strong-buy rating to a hold rating in a research note issued to investors on Monday morning,Zacks.com reports.

Espey Mfg. & Electronics Price Performance

Shares of NYSEAMERICAN:ESP opened at $60.19 on Monday. The company has a market capitalization of $180.57 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.88 and a beta of 0.44. The business’s 50-day moving average is $62.20 and its 200-day moving average is $52.63. Espey Mfg. & Electronics has a 1 year low of $34.90 and a 1 year high of $74.77.

Espey Mfg. & Electronics (NYSEAMERICAN:ESP) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, May 12th. The company reported $0.99 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.88 by $0.11. The company had revenue of $11.42 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $13.20 million. Espey Mfg. & Electronics had a return on equity of 20.38% and a net margin of 25.50%.

Espey Mfg. & Electronics Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 27th. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 20th were paid a $0.25 dividend. This represents a $1.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.7%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, March 20th. Espey Mfg. & Electronics’s payout ratio is currently 40.82%.

Insider Transactions at Espey Mfg. & Electronics

In other news, Director Michael W. Wool sold 1,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $57.90, for a total value of $57,900.00. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 17,400 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,007,460. The trade was a 5.43% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, Director Paul J. Corr sold 2,400 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $57.90, for a total value of $138,960.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 20,439 shares in the company, valued at $1,183,418.10. This represents a 10.51% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders sold a total of 5,642 shares of company stock worth $327,412 over the last three months. 5.54% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in ESP. Bank of America Corp DE lifted its stake in shares of Espey Mfg. & Electronics by 356.3% in the 2nd quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 1,232 shares of the company’s stock valued at $56,000 after purchasing an additional 962 shares during the period. BNP Paribas Financial Markets acquired a new position in shares of Espey Mfg. & Electronics in the 3rd quarter valued at about $67,000. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted its stake in shares of Espey Mfg. & Electronics by 56,588.9% in the 3rd quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 5,102 shares of the company’s stock valued at $202,000 after purchasing an additional 5,093 shares during the period. Bridgeway Capital Management LLC bought a new stake in Espey Mfg. & Electronics in the 2nd quarter valued at about $211,000. Finally, Man Group plc bought a new stake in Espey Mfg. & Electronics in the 3rd quarter valued at about $226,000. 36.65% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Espey Mfg. & Electronics

Espey Manufacturing & Electronics Corp., founded in 1961 and headquartered in Lowell, Massachusetts, specializes in the design, development and manufacture of precision electronic components and sensor systems. The company’s core product offerings include magnetostrictive transducers, torque and position sensors, wideband RF and microwave amplifiers, as well as high-reliability printed circuit boards and molded bus assemblies. These solutions are engineered to withstand harsh operating environments and meet stringent performance requirements.

Espey’s sensor technologies are employed in applications ranging from industrial automation and energy production to commercial and military aerospace platforms.