Eagle Asset Management Inc. Cuts Stake in Eaton Co. plc (NYSE:ETN)

Eagle Asset Management Inc. reduced its position in shares of Eaton Co. plc (NYSE:ETN - Free Report) by 2.1% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 589,389 shares of the industrial products company's stock after selling 12,694 shares during the period. Eaton makes up approximately 1.2% of Eagle Asset Management Inc.'s portfolio, making the stock its 7th largest position. Eagle Asset Management Inc. owned about 0.15% of Eaton worth $216,111,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the business. MQS Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Eaton during the first quarter valued at $207,000. Axxcess Wealth Management LLC raised its holdings in Eaton by 95.1% in the 1st quarter. Axxcess Wealth Management LLC now owns 6,353 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $1,986,000 after acquiring an additional 3,097 shares during the last quarter. Capital International Inc. CA acquired a new stake in shares of Eaton during the first quarter worth $2,009,000. Canada Pension Plan Investment Board grew its position in shares of Eaton by 163.4% in the first quarter. Canada Pension Plan Investment Board now owns 263,409 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $82,363,000 after purchasing an additional 163,394 shares during the period. Finally, Gamco Investors INC. ET AL increased its stake in Eaton by 4.2% in the first quarter. Gamco Investors INC. ET AL now owns 16,833 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $5,263,000 after purchasing an additional 677 shares during the last quarter. 82.97% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Eaton Stock Up 1.4 %

NYSE ETN traded up $5.18 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $376.13. 1,078,657 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,099,952. Eaton Co. plc has a 1-year low of $224.52 and a 1-year high of $377.22. The company has a current ratio of 1.53, a quick ratio of 1.00 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.45. The company has a market cap of $148.65 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 39.75, a P/E/G ratio of 2.89 and a beta of 1.01. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $341.32 and a 200-day simple moving average of $322.65.

Eaton (NYSE:ETN - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 31st. The industrial products company reported $2.84 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $2.80 by $0.04. The firm had revenue of $6.35 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.37 billion. Eaton had a net margin of 15.32% and a return on equity of 21.97%. The firm's revenue was up 7.9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $2.47 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts expect that Eaton Co. plc will post 10.79 EPS for the current year.

Eaton Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 22nd. Shareholders of record on Monday, November 4th will be paid a dividend of $0.94 per share. This represents a $3.76 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.00%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, November 4th. Eaton's payout ratio is currently 40.00%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms have commented on ETN. Wolfe Research upgraded Eaton from an "underperform" rating to a "peer perform" rating in a report on Friday, September 6th. Evercore ISI downgraded shares of Eaton from an "outperform" rating to an "inline" rating and increased their price target for the stock from $333.00 to $389.00 in a research note on Wednesday, November 13th. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price objective on Eaton from $315.00 to $342.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a report on Monday, October 7th. UBS Group started coverage on Eaton in a report on Wednesday, November 13th. They issued a "buy" rating and a $431.00 target price on the stock. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada restated an "outperform" rating and set a $374.00 price target on shares of Eaton in a research note on Friday, November 1st. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and thirteen have given a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Eaton has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $357.83.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Eaton news, Director Gregory R. Page sold 4,000 shares of Eaton stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, November 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $335.30, for a total value of $1,341,200.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 51,422 shares in the company, valued at $17,241,796.60. The trade was a 7.22 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, insider Craig Arnold sold 61,569 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, November 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $360.97, for a total value of $22,224,561.93. Following the sale, the insider now owns 506,360 shares in the company, valued at $182,780,769.20. The trade was a 10.84 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 68,705 shares of company stock valued at $24,516,346 in the last quarter. Insiders own 0.53% of the company's stock.

About Eaton

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.