Eaton Co. plc (NYSE:ETN) Position Trimmed by Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA

Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA lessened its stake in Eaton Co. plc (NYSE:ETN - Free Report) by 12.3% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 9,030,303 shares of the industrial products company's stock after selling 1,263,026 shares during the quarter. Eaton accounts for 0.9% of Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA's investment portfolio, making the stock its 15th largest position. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA owned approximately 2.28% of Eaton worth $2,996,887,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Flagship Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Eaton during the 4th quarter worth about $27,000. Noble Wealth Management PBC purchased a new position in shares of Eaton during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $30,000. Horizon Bancorp Inc. IN boosted its position in Eaton by 321.7% during the fourth quarter. Horizon Bancorp Inc. IN now owns 97 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $32,000 after acquiring an additional 74 shares during the last quarter. Morse Asset Management Inc purchased a new stake in Eaton in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $33,000. Finally, Murphy & Mullick Capital Management Corp acquired a new position in Eaton in the 4th quarter valued at $33,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 82.97% of the company's stock.

Eaton Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE ETN traded down $23.10 during midday trading on Thursday, reaching $260.74. 5,551,734 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,562,072. The company has a market cap of $102.15 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 27.45, a PEG ratio of 2.64 and a beta of 1.09. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $298.88 and a 200 day moving average price of $330.42. Eaton Co. plc has a 52 week low of $255.65 and a 52 week high of $379.99. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.46, a current ratio of 1.50 and a quick ratio of 0.96.

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

Eaton Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 28th. Investors of record on Monday, March 10th were paid a dividend of $1.04 per share. The ex-dividend date was Monday, March 10th. This represents a $4.16 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.60%. This is a boost from Eaton's previous quarterly dividend of $0.94. Eaton's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 43.79%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts recently issued reports on ETN shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their target price on shares of Eaton from $350.00 to $348.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, January 15th. Royal Bank of Canada dropped their price objective on shares of Eaton from $405.00 to $376.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, March 6th. Evercore ISI decreased their target price on shares of Eaton from $382.00 to $326.00 and set an "in-line" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, February 19th. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price target on shares of Eaton from $335.00 to $305.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, March 5th. Finally, StockNews.com cut shares of Eaton from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Friday, March 21st. Eight investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twelve have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $357.16.

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.