Eaton Sees Unusually Large Options Volume (NYSE:ETN)

Eaton Co. plc (NYSE:ETN) was the recipient of unusually large options trading on Monday. Stock investors bought 8,194 call options on the company. This is an increase of 117% compared to the average volume of 3,783 call options.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts have recently weighed in on the company. Bank of America raised their price objective on Eaton from $320.00 to $330.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, March 18th. UBS Group increased their price target on shares of Eaton from $255.00 to $305.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, February 2nd. Citigroup increased their price target on shares of Eaton from $270.00 to $310.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, February 2nd. Mizuho raised their price objective on shares of Eaton from $300.00 to $340.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 20th. Finally, Wolfe Research reaffirmed an “underperform” rating and set a $312.00 target price on shares of Eaton in a research report on Monday, April 8th. One research 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, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $295.60.

Eaton Stock Performance

Shares of ETN traded up $0.79 during trading hours on Monday, reaching $325.09. 1,178,355 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,946,668. The stock has a market capitalization of $129.87 billion, a P/E ratio of 40.44, a P/E/G ratio of 2.69 and a beta of 1.07. 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 has a 12-month low of $165.24 and a 12-month high of $331.47. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $304.82 and a 200-day moving average price of $258.90.

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

Eaton Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 24th. Shareholders of record on Monday, May 6th will be issued a $0.94 dividend. This represents a $3.76 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.16%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, May 3rd. Eaton’s payout ratio is 46.88%.

Insider Transactions at Eaton

In related news, insider Ernest W. Marshall, Jr. sold 19,750 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $273.17, for a total value of $5,395,107.50. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 29,712 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $8,116,427.04. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. In other news, insider Heath B. Monesmith sold 13,027 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on 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 completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 69,472 shares in the company, valued at approximately $20,244,140.80. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, insider Ernest W. Marshall, Jr. sold 19,750 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $273.17, for a total value of $5,395,107.50. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 29,712 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $8,116,427.04. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 38,969 shares of company stock valued at $10,904,774 in the last ninety days. 0.33% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Eaton

Hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the company. LifeSteps Financial Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Eaton during the 1st quarter worth about $25,000. Atwood & Palmer Inc. raised its position in shares of Eaton by 142.9% during the 1st quarter. Atwood & Palmer Inc. now owns 85 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $27,000 after purchasing an additional 50 shares during the last quarter. Tennessee Valley Asset Management Partners acquired a new position in shares of Eaton during the 4th quarter worth about $25,000. Redmont Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Eaton during the 1st quarter worth about $33,000. Finally, Clear Investment Research LLC acquired a new position in shares of Eaton during the 4th quarter worth about $29,000. 82.97% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.