Eaton Co. plc (NYSE:ETN) Position Trimmed by Foster & Motley Inc.

Foster & Motley Inc. trimmed its position in shares of Eaton Co. plc (NYSE:ETN) by 4.5% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 15,907 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 753 shares during the quarter. Foster & Motley Inc.’s holdings in Eaton were worth $3,831,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Meeder Asset Management Inc. lifted its holdings in Eaton by 3.3% in the 4th quarter. Meeder Asset Management Inc. now owns 1,315 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $317,000 after purchasing an additional 42 shares during the last quarter. Telemus Capital LLC increased its position in shares of Eaton by 1.0% during the fourth quarter. Telemus Capital LLC now owns 4,111 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $990,000 after purchasing an additional 42 shares during the period. Amarillo National Bank increased its position in shares of Eaton by 3.5% during the fourth quarter. Amarillo National Bank now owns 1,270 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $306,000 after purchasing an additional 43 shares during the period. Monument Capital Management increased its position in shares of Eaton by 1.9% during the fourth quarter. Monument Capital Management now owns 2,415 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $582,000 after purchasing an additional 44 shares during the period. Finally, Red Spruce Capital LLC increased its position in shares of Eaton by 0.3% during the fourth quarter. Red Spruce Capital LLC now owns 17,522 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $4,220,000 after purchasing an additional 45 shares during the period. 82.97% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Buying and Selling at Eaton

In other Eaton news, insider Heath B. Monesmith sold 13,027 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $291.40, for a total value of $3,796,067.80. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 69,472 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $20,244,140.80. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. In other Eaton news, insider Olivier Leonetti sold 4,461 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $272.00, for a total value of $1,213,392.00. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 630 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $171,360. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, insider Heath B. Monesmith sold 13,027 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $291.40, for a total value of $3,796,067.80. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 69,472 shares in the company, valued at approximately $20,244,140.80. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 38,969 shares of company stock valued at $10,904,774. 0.33% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Eaton Trading Up 0.6 %

Shares of ETN opened at $310.01 on Tuesday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.02, a current ratio of 1.51 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.43. Eaton Co. plc has a 12-month low of $161.12 and a 12-month high of $331.47. The firm has a market capitalization of $123.85 billion, a PE ratio of 38.43, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.51 and a beta of 1.07. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $301.39 and its 200-day simple moving average is $255.94.

Eaton (NYSE:ETN) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 1st. The industrial products company reported $2.55 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.47 by $0.08. Eaton had a return on equity of 20.05% and a net margin of 13.88%. The business had revenue of $5.97 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.91 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $2.06 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 10.8% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, research analysts predict that Eaton Co. plc will post 10.28 earnings per share for the current year.

Eaton Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 29th. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 11th were paid a dividend of $0.94 per share. This represents a $3.76 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.21%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, March 8th. This is a positive change from Eaton’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.86. Eaton’s dividend payout ratio is 46.88%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts have weighed in on the company. Mizuho upped their price target on Eaton from $300.00 to $340.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, March 20th. Citigroup upped their price target on Eaton from $270.00 to $310.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, February 2nd. Royal Bank of Canada upgraded Eaton from a “sector perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and upped their price target for the company from $286.00 to $371.00 in a research report on Friday, April 5th. The Goldman Sachs Group upped their price target on Eaton from $287.00 to $328.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, March 15th. Finally, Barclays upgraded Eaton from an “underweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and upped their price target for the company from $250.00 to $300.00 in a research report on Tuesday, April 2nd. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have issued a hold rating and twelve have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Eaton currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $295.60.

Eaton Company 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.