Zacks Investment Management Purchases 2,982 Shares of Eaton Co. plc (NYSE:ETN)

Zacks Investment Management raised its stake in shares of Eaton Co. plc (NYSE:ETN - Free Report) by 84.4% in the third quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 6,516 shares of the industrial products company's stock after buying an additional 2,982 shares during the quarter. Zacks Investment Management's holdings in Eaton were worth $2,160,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Breakwater Investment Management increased its stake in Eaton by 1,560.0% in the 2nd quarter. Breakwater Investment Management now owns 83 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $26,000 after acquiring an additional 78 shares during the last quarter. Proffitt & Goodson Inc. purchased a new stake in Eaton in the second quarter valued at approximately $29,000. LGT Financial Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Eaton during the second quarter valued at approximately $33,000. Morse Asset Management Inc purchased a new position in Eaton in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $33,000. Finally, West Financial Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Eaton during the 3rd quarter valued at $35,000. 82.97% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, insider Ernest W. Marshall, Jr. sold 1,412 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, November 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $378.58, for a total transaction of $534,554.96. Following the sale, the insider now owns 31,200 shares in the company, valued at $11,811,696. This represents a 4.33 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, Director Gregory R. Page sold 4,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, November 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $335.30, for a total transaction 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 ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 66,981 shares of company stock valued at $24,100,317. 0.53% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Eaton Trading Down 1.5 %

NYSE:ETN traded down $5.51 during trading hours on Tuesday, hitting $358.55. The company had a trading volume of 1,891,098 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,088,361. Eaton Co. plc has a 52 week low of $231.84 and a 52 week high of $379.99. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.45, a current ratio of 1.53 and a quick ratio of 1.00. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $353.40 and a 200 day moving average price of $325.99. The company has a market capitalization of $141.70 billion, a PE ratio of 38.14, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.81 and a beta of 1.03.

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

Eaton Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, November 22nd. Investors of record on Monday, November 4th were given a dividend of $0.94 per share. This represents a $3.76 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.05%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, November 4th. Eaton's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 40.00%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms recently commented on ETN. Evercore ISI cut Eaton from an "outperform" rating to an "inline" rating and increased their target price for the company from $333.00 to $389.00 in a research note on Wednesday, November 13th. Citigroup boosted their target price on Eaton from $394.00 to $440.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Monday. Bank of America increased their price target 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. UBS Group began coverage on shares of Eaton in a report on Wednesday, November 13th. They issued a "buy" rating and a $431.00 price objective for the company. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada reaffirmed an "outperform" rating and set a $374.00 target price on shares of Eaton in a report on Friday, November 1st. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and thirteen have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $367.83.

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.