Meridian Financial Partners LLC Invests $252,000 in Eaton Co. plc (NYSE:ETN)

Meridian Financial Partners LLC bought a new position in shares of Eaton Co. plc (NYSE:ETN) during the first quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor bought 800 shares of the industrial products company’s stock, valued at approximately $252,000.

A number of other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of ETN. Tennessee Valley Asset Management Partners purchased a new stake in Eaton in the 4th quarter valued at $25,000. Atwood & Palmer Inc. raised its position in Eaton by 142.9% in the 1st quarter. Atwood & Palmer Inc. now owns 85 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $27,000 after buying an additional 50 shares during the last quarter. Clear Investment Research LLC purchased a new stake in Eaton in the 4th quarter valued at $29,000. Valued Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Eaton in the 4th quarter valued at $35,000. Finally, Chilton Capital Management LLC purchased a new stake in Eaton in the 4th quarter valued at $35,000. 82.97% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Eaton Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:ETN traded down $0.39 on Friday, hitting $313.55. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 2,557,711 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,258,211. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $325.35 and a 200 day simple moving average of $292.72. Eaton Co. plc has a 1 year low of $191.82 and a 1 year high of $345.19. The company has a market capitalization of $125.36 billion, a PE ratio of 37.02, a PEG ratio of 2.63 and a beta of 1.04. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.42, a current ratio of 1.56 and a quick ratio of 1.05.

Eaton (NYSE:ETN) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 30th. The industrial products company reported $2.40 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.28 by $0.12. Eaton had a return on equity of 20.69% and a net margin of 14.38%. The firm had revenue of $5.94 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $5.91 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $1.88 EPS. The company’s revenue was up 8.4% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts forecast that Eaton Co. plc will post 10.56 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Eaton Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, May 24th. Investors of record on Monday, May 6th were issued a dividend of $0.94 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, May 3rd. This represents a $3.76 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.20%. Eaton’s dividend payout ratio is 44.39%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

ETN has been the subject of several research reports. The Goldman Sachs Group increased their price target on Eaton from $287.00 to $328.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, March 15th. Barclays upgraded Eaton from an “underweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and increased their price target for the stock from $250.00 to $300.00 in a research note on Tuesday, April 2nd. Bank of America increased their price target on Eaton from $320.00 to $330.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, March 18th. Raymond James initiated coverage on Eaton in a research note on Friday. They set an “outperform” rating and a $375.00 price target for the company. Finally, Wolfe Research reiterated an “underperform” rating and set a $312.00 price target on shares of Eaton in a research note on Monday, April 8th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have given a hold rating and thirteen have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Eaton has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $318.06.

Insider Activity at Eaton

In related news, insider Peter Denk sold 2,416 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, May 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $331.84, for a total transaction of $801,725.44. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 5,086 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,687,738.24. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. 0.53% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Eaton 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.