Sterling Capital Management LLC Sells 628 Shares of Eaton Co. plc (NYSE:ETN)

Sterling Capital Management LLC trimmed its position in Eaton Co. plc (NYSE:ETN) by 34.6% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 1,186 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 628 shares during the period. Sterling Capital Management LLC’s holdings in Eaton were worth $394,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in ETN. Wetzel Investment Advisors Inc. lifted its position in Eaton by 0.9% during the fourth quarter. Wetzel Investment Advisors Inc. now owns 3,101 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $1,029,000 after purchasing an additional 28 shares during the last quarter. Westmount Partners LLC increased its holdings in Eaton by 3.1% during the 4th quarter. Westmount Partners LLC now owns 985 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $327,000 after purchasing an additional 30 shares during the period. Signal Advisors Wealth LLC raised its holdings in shares of Eaton by 3.5% during the fourth quarter. Signal Advisors Wealth LLC now owns 896 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $297,000 after acquiring an additional 30 shares in the last quarter. Lantz Financial LLC raised its holdings in Eaton by 4.8% in the 4th quarter. Lantz Financial LLC now owns 659 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $219,000 after purchasing an additional 30 shares in the last quarter. Finally, FARMERS & MERCHANTS TRUST Co OF LONG BEACH lifted its holdings in Eaton by 2.0% in the fourth quarter. FARMERS & MERCHANTS TRUST Co OF LONG BEACH now owns 1,639 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $544,000 after buying an additional 32 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 82.97% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several brokerages have commented on ETN. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their price objective on Eaton from $350.00 to $289.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, April 8th. Jefferies Financial Group dropped their price objective on Eaton from $390.00 to $335.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, March 12th. Barclays decreased their target price on shares of Eaton from $315.00 to $306.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, April 4th. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price target on shares of Eaton from $335.00 to $305.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, March 5th. Finally, Melius downgraded Eaton from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and set a $373.00 target price on the stock. in a research report on Tuesday, January 28th. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and thirteen have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Eaton currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $350.22.

Eaton Trading Down 0.4 %

Shares of ETN opened at $268.15 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.46, a quick ratio of 0.96 and a current ratio of 1.50. Eaton Co. plc has a fifty-two week low of $231.85 and a fifty-two week high of $379.99. The company’s fifty day moving average is $284.95 and its 200 day moving average is $325.22. The stock has a market capitalization of $105.05 billion, a PE ratio of 28.23, a P/E/G ratio of 2.64 and a beta of 1.09.

Eaton (NYSE:ETN) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Friday, January 31st. The industrial products company reported $2.83 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.82 by $0.01. Eaton had a net margin of 15.25% and a return on equity of 22.62%. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $2.55 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts expect that Eaton Co. plc will post 12.02 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Eaton Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 28th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 10th were given a $1.04 dividend. This represents a $4.16 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.55%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, March 10th. This is an increase from Eaton’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.94. Eaton’s dividend payout ratio is 43.79%.

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.