Rockland Trust Co. Purchases New Holdings in Eaton Co. plc (NYSE:ETN)

Rockland Trust Co. acquired a new stake in shares of Eaton Co. plc (NYSE:ETN - Free Report) in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor acquired 1,109 shares of the industrial products company's stock, valued at approximately $368,000.

A number of other large investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. Groupama Asset Managment lifted its stake in shares of Eaton by 83.2% during the 3rd quarter. Groupama Asset Managment now owns 9,463 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $31,000 after buying an additional 4,298 shares in the last quarter. Horizon Bancorp Inc. IN raised its holdings in Eaton by 321.7% during the 4th quarter. Horizon Bancorp Inc. IN now owns 97 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $32,000 after acquiring an additional 74 shares during the period. Morse Asset Management Inc purchased a new stake in shares of Eaton during the third quarter worth $33,000. West Financial Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Eaton in the third quarter worth $35,000. Finally, DT Investment Partners LLC purchased a new position in shares of Eaton in the third quarter valued at $37,000. 82.97% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Eaton Trading Up 0.6 %

NYSE:ETN opened at $342.35 on Thursday. The firm has a market capitalization of $135.30 billion, a P/E ratio of 36.42, a P/E/G ratio of 2.27 and a beta of 1.06. Eaton Co. plc has a 52 week low of $236.04 and a 52 week high of $379.99. The company has a quick ratio of 1.00, a current ratio of 1.53 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.45. The company has a fifty day moving average of $355.38 and a 200 day moving average of $329.33.

Eaton (NYSE:ETN - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, October 31st. The industrial products company reported $2.84 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.80 by $0.04. The company had revenue of $6.35 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $6.37 billion. Eaton had a return on equity of 21.97% and a net margin of 15.32%. Eaton's quarterly revenue was up 7.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the firm earned $2.47 earnings per share. On average, research analysts predict that Eaton Co. plc will post 10.8 earnings per share for the current year.

Eaton Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, November 22nd. Investors of record on Monday, November 4th were paid a $0.94 dividend. This represents a $3.76 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.10%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, November 4th. Eaton's payout ratio is 40.00%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research analysts have commented on ETN shares. Mizuho raised their target price on Eaton from $365.00 to $385.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Friday, November 1st. Bank of America raised their price objective on shares of Eaton from $350.00 to $410.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, November 13th. Jefferies Financial Group upped their target price on shares of Eaton from $400.00 to $440.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, December 6th. Barclays boosted their price target on shares of Eaton from $320.00 to $353.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Thursday, December 5th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their price objective on Eaton from $350.00 to $348.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and thirteen have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Eaton currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $368.89.

Insider Activity at Eaton

In other Eaton news, insider Ernest W. Marshall, Jr. sold 1,412 shares of Eaton stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, November 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $378.58, for a total transaction of $534,554.96. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 31,200 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $11,811,696. The trade was a 4.33 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, Director Gregory R. Page sold 4,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, November 1st. The shares were 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 owns 51,422 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $17,241,796.60. The trade was a 7.22 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 76,981 shares of company stock worth $27,660,117 over the last quarter. Corporate insiders own 0.33% 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.