Aviva PLC Boosts Stock Position in Eaton Co. plc (NYSE:ETN)

Aviva PLC increased its stake in shares of Eaton Co. plc (NYSE:ETN - Free Report) by 58.9% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 281,322 shares of the industrial products company's stock after purchasing an additional 104,225 shares during the period. Aviva PLC owned 0.07% of Eaton worth $93,362,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of ETN. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in shares of Eaton in the fourth quarter worth approximately $1,495,582,000. Proficio Capital Partners LLC lifted its holdings in Eaton by 42,255.3% in the 4th quarter. Proficio Capital Partners LLC now owns 732,323 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $243,036,000 after purchasing an additional 730,594 shares in the last quarter. Bank Julius Baer & Co. Ltd Zurich boosted its stake in Eaton by 390.7% during the 4th quarter. Bank Julius Baer & Co. Ltd Zurich now owns 539,673 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $193,421,000 after purchasing an additional 429,701 shares during the last quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. grew its holdings in shares of Eaton by 3,508.4% during the fourth quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 401,728 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $133,321,000 after buying an additional 390,595 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Franklin Resources Inc. raised its position in shares of Eaton by 13.3% in the fourth quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 2,744,691 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $910,881,000 after buying an additional 323,065 shares during the last quarter. 82.97% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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Eaton Price Performance

ETN traded down $14.58 on Thursday, hitting $269.01. 2,461,799 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,601,384. The business's fifty day moving average is $291.02 and its 200 day moving average is $327.97. Eaton Co. plc has a fifty-two week low of $231.85 and a fifty-two week high of $379.99. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.46, a quick ratio of 0.96 and a current ratio of 1.50. The firm has a market capitalization of $105.39 billion, a P/E ratio of 28.33, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.64 and a beta of 1.09.

Eaton (NYSE:ETN - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Friday, January 31st. The industrial products company reported $2.83 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.82 by $0.01. Eaton had a return on equity of 22.62% and a net margin of 15.25%. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $2.55 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Eaton Co. plc will post 12.02 EPS for the current year.

Eaton Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 28th. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 10th were given a $1.04 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, March 10th. This is a positive change from Eaton's previous quarterly dividend of $0.94. This represents a $4.16 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.55%. Eaton's dividend payout ratio is currently 43.79%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several brokerages recently issued reports on ETN. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price objective on shares of Eaton from $335.00 to $305.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, March 5th. Jefferies Financial Group dropped their price target on Eaton from $390.00 to $335.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, March 12th. Royal Bank of Canada lowered their price objective on Eaton from $405.00 to $376.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, March 6th. KeyCorp cut their target price on Eaton from $340.00 to $325.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday. Finally, Melius Research reissued a "hold" rating and set a $373.00 price target on shares of Eaton in a research report on Tuesday, January 28th. Eight research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twelve have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $355.06.

Eaton Profile

Eaton Corporation plc operates as a power management company worldwide. The company's Electrical Americas and Electrical Global segment provides electrical components, industrial components, power distribution and assemblies, residential products, single and three phase power quality and connectivity products, wiring devices, circuit protection products, utility power distribution products, power reliability equipment, and services, as well as hazardous duty electrical equipment, emergency lighting, fire detection, explosion-proof instrumentation, and structural support systems.