Eaton Co. plc (NYSE:ETN) Shares Acquired by KBC Group NV

KBC Group NV boosted its position in shares of Eaton Co. plc (NYSE:ETN - Free Report) by 89.8% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 57,044 shares of the industrial products company's stock after buying an additional 26,995 shares during the period. KBC Group NV's holdings in Eaton were worth $18,906,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in ETN. IAM Advisory LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Eaton during the 2nd quarter valued at about $599,000. Interval Partners LP increased its stake in Eaton by 82.7% during the second quarter. Interval Partners LP now owns 151,716 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $47,571,000 after acquiring an additional 68,693 shares during the last quarter. Scientech Research LLC raised its position in Eaton by 285.5% during the second quarter. Scientech Research LLC now owns 5,744 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $1,801,000 after purchasing an additional 4,254 shares during the period. B. Riley Wealth Advisors Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Eaton by 25.9% in the 2nd quarter. B. Riley Wealth Advisors Inc. now owns 27,609 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $8,657,000 after purchasing an additional 5,676 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Leavell Investment Management Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Eaton by 67.6% in the 2nd quarter. Leavell Investment Management Inc. now owns 8,556 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $2,683,000 after purchasing an additional 3,452 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 82.97% of the company's stock.

Eaton Stock Down 0.8 %

Shares of ETN stock traded down $2.87 on Friday, hitting $358.99. The stock had a trading volume of 2,232,026 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,112,767. Eaton Co. plc has a one year low of $224.52 and a one year high of $373.49. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $335.82 and a 200 day moving average price of $321.35. The company has a market cap of $141.87 billion, a PE ratio of 38.19, a P/E/G ratio of 2.96 and a beta of 1.01. The company has a quick ratio of 1.00, a current ratio of 1.53 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.45.

Eaton (NYSE:ETN - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, October 31st. The industrial products company reported $2.84 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.80 by $0.04. The business had revenue of $6.35 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.37 billion. Eaton had a net margin of 15.32% and a return on equity of 21.97%. The company's quarterly revenue was up 7.9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $2.47 EPS. Research analysts anticipate that Eaton Co. plc will post 10.79 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Eaton Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 22nd. Stockholders of record on Monday, November 4th will be issued a $0.94 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, November 4th. This represents a $3.76 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.05%. Eaton's dividend payout ratio is presently 40.00%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts recently weighed in on ETN shares. UBS Group initiated coverage on Eaton in a report on Wednesday. They set a "buy" rating and a $431.00 price target on the stock. Raymond James reduced their target price on shares of Eaton from $375.00 to $365.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, September 9th. Sanford C. Bernstein initiated coverage on shares of Eaton in a research note on Tuesday, November 5th. They set an "outperform" rating and a $382.00 price target for the company. Bank of America increased their price objective on shares of Eaton from $350.00 to $410.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday. Finally, Barclays dropped their target price on Eaton from $327.00 to $320.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a research report on Friday, November 1st. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and thirteen have given a buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $357.83.

Insider Transactions at Eaton

In other Eaton news, Director Karenann K. Terrell acquired 500 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, August 21st. The stock was purchased at an average price of $298.97 per share, for a total transaction of $149,485.00. Following the acquisition, the director now owns 500 shares in the company, valued at approximately $149,485. This trade represents a ∞ increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, insider Craig Arnold sold 61,569 shares of the business's stock in a transaction 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 transaction, the insider now owns 506,360 shares in the company, valued at approximately $182,780,769.20. This trade represents a 10.84 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders sold 68,705 shares of company stock valued at $24,516,346. Corporate insiders own 0.53% of the company's stock.

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.