Vaughan Nelson Investment Management L.P. Acquires New Position in Eaton Co. plc (NYSE:ETN)

Vaughan Nelson Investment Management L.P. bought a new position in shares of Eaton Co. plc (NYSE:ETN - Free Report) in the third quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor bought 415,743 shares of the industrial products company's stock, valued at approximately $137,794,000. Eaton makes up 1.2% of Vaughan Nelson Investment Management L.P.'s holdings, making the stock its 24th largest position. Vaughan Nelson Investment Management L.P. owned about 0.11% of Eaton at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of ETN. Acadian Asset Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Eaton by 139.2% during the 1st quarter. Acadian Asset Management LLC now owns 45,277 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $14,152,000 after purchasing an additional 26,349 shares during the period. Trustmark National Bank Trust Department increased its stake in Eaton by 6.1% in the 1st quarter. Trustmark National Bank Trust Department now owns 21,440 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $6,704,000 after purchasing an additional 1,242 shares in the last quarter. Penobscot Investment Management Company Inc. raised its stake in shares of Eaton by 2.1% during the 1st quarter. Penobscot Investment Management Company Inc. now owns 3,157 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $987,000 after buying an additional 65 shares during the last quarter. Rockport Wealth LLC purchased a new position in Eaton during the 1st quarter valued at about $621,000. Finally, O Shaughnessy Asset Management LLC raised its position in Eaton by 25.4% during the first quarter. O Shaughnessy Asset Management LLC now owns 55,948 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $17,494,000 after acquiring an additional 11,347 shares during the last quarter. 82.97% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts have recently weighed in on ETN shares. Raymond James dropped their price objective on shares of Eaton from $375.00 to $365.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research note on Monday, September 9th. Mizuho boosted their price target on Eaton from $365.00 to $385.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Friday, November 1st. Royal Bank of Canada restated an "outperform" rating and issued a $374.00 price objective on shares of Eaton in a research report on Friday, November 1st. Citigroup initiated coverage on shares of Eaton in a research note on Monday, September 16th. They issued a "buy" rating and a $348.00 target price for the company. Finally, Wolfe Research raised shares of Eaton from an "underperform" rating to a "peer perform" rating in a research note on Friday, September 6th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and thirteen have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $357.83.

Eaton Trading Down 0.8 %

Shares of NYSE ETN traded down $2.87 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $358.99. The stock had a trading volume of 2,232,026 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,038,455. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $335.82 and a 200 day moving average price of $321.37. The company has a market capitalization of $141.87 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 38.19, a PEG ratio of 2.85 and a beta of 1.01. Eaton Co. plc has a 1-year low of $224.52 and a 1-year high of $373.49. 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 announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, October 31st. The industrial products company reported $2.84 earnings per share 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 analysts' expectations of $6.37 billion. Eaton had a net margin of 15.32% and a return on equity of 21.97%. Eaton's revenue was up 7.9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $2.47 earnings per share. On average, analysts predict that Eaton Co. plc will post 10.79 earnings per share for the current year.

Eaton Announces Dividend

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

Insider Activity

In related news, insider Michael Yelton sold 3,136 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, August 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $303.12, for a total value of $950,584.32. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 3,914 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,186,411.68. The trade was a 44.48 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, insider Craig Arnold sold 61,569 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, November 6th. The shares were 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 of the company's stock, valued at approximately $182,780,769.20. This trade represents a 10.84 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 68,705 shares of company stock worth $24,516,346. 0.53% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

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.