Wedmont Private Capital Raises Stock Holdings in Eaton Co. plc (NYSE:ETN)

Wedmont Private Capital boosted its holdings in shares of Eaton Co. plc (NYSE:ETN) by 7.1% in the first quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The fund owned 5,872 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after acquiring an additional 388 shares during the quarter. Wedmont Private Capital’s holdings in Eaton were worth $1,630,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Bearing Point Capital LLC purchased a new position in Eaton in the 4th quarter worth about $2,713,000. Strategic Financial Concepts LLC bought a new position in Eaton in the 4th quarter worth about $38,000. American National Bank & Trust increased its position in shares of Eaton by 5.4% during the first quarter. American National Bank & Trust now owns 3,145 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $855,000 after acquiring an additional 162 shares during the period. Wingate Wealth Advisors Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Eaton during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $161,000. Finally, C2P Capital Advisory Group LLC d.b.a. Prosperity Capital Advisors grew its stake in Eaton by 46.9% in the fourth quarter. C2P Capital Advisory Group LLC d.b.a. Prosperity Capital Advisors now owns 3,365 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $1,117,000 after purchasing an additional 1,074 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 82.97% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts have recently commented on ETN shares. BNP Paribas began coverage on Eaton in a research note on Thursday, May 15th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $380.00 price target on the stock. Citigroup raised their target price on shares of Eaton from $323.00 to $351.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, May 5th. Morgan Stanley lowered their price target on shares of Eaton from $385.00 to $375.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, May 6th. Jefferies Financial Group dropped their price objective on shares of Eaton from $390.00 to $335.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, March 12th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price objective on shares of Eaton from $300.00 to $360.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, May 16th. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fifteen have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $367.83.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, insider Michael Yelton sold 2,120 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, May 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $296.87, for a total transaction of $629,364.40. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 3,382 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,004,014.34. This trade represents a 38.53% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, insider Craig Arnold sold 51,054 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, May 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $305.43, for a total transaction of $15,593,423.22. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 489,444 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $149,490,880.92. This represents a 9.45% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 156,660 shares of company stock valued at $49,622,894. 0.30% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Eaton Trading Up 1.6%

Eaton stock opened at $331.71 on Monday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.46, a quick ratio of 0.96 and a current ratio of 1.50. The stock has a market cap of $129.80 billion, a PE ratio of 34.92, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.64 and a beta of 1.16. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $298.11 and a two-hundred day moving average of $315.95. Eaton Co. plc has a one year low of $231.85 and a one year high of $379.99.

Eaton (NYSE:ETN) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Friday, May 2nd. The industrial products company reported $2.72 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.70 by $0.02. The firm had revenue of $6.38 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.26 billion. Eaton had a net margin of 15.25% and a return on equity of 22.62%. Eaton’s revenue was up 7.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the firm posted $2.40 EPS. On average, research analysts anticipate that Eaton Co. plc will post 12.02 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Eaton Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, May 23rd. Investors of record on Monday, May 5th were paid a $1.04 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Monday, May 5th. This represents a $4.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.25%. Eaton’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 41.98%.

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.