Eaton (NYSE:ETN) Shares Down 3.1% – Should You Sell?

Eaton Co. plc (NYSE:ETN)’s share price traded down 3.1% during mid-day trading on Monday . The company traded as low as $359.41 and last traded at $359.67. 470,379 shares traded hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 77% from the average session volume of 2,080,750 shares. The stock had previously closed at $371.22.

Analyst Ratings Changes

ETN has been the subject of several research analyst reports. Citigroup boosted their target price on Eaton from $394.00 to $440.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday. Morgan Stanley initiated coverage on shares of Eaton in a research note on Friday, September 6th. They issued an “overweight” rating and a $370.00 price objective for the company. UBS Group began coverage on shares of Eaton in a research report on Wednesday, November 13th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $431.00 target price on the stock. Jefferies Financial Group upped their price target on shares of Eaton from $400.00 to $440.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, December 6th. Finally, Barclays raised their price objective on Eaton from $320.00 to $353.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Thursday, December 5th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and thirteen have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $367.83.

Eaton Price Performance

The firm has a market cap of $141.70 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 38.14, a P/E/G ratio of 2.81 and a beta of 1.03. The company has a current ratio of 1.53, a quick ratio of 1.00 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.45. The business’s 50-day simple moving average is $353.40 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $325.99.

Eaton (NYSE:ETN) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 31st. The industrial products company reported $2.84 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.80 by $0.04. The company had revenue of $6.35 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $6.37 billion. Eaton had a net margin of 15.32% and a return on equity of 21.97%. Eaton’s revenue for the quarter was up 7.9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $2.47 earnings per share. As a group, research analysts expect that Eaton Co. plc will post 10.8 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Eaton Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, November 22nd. Investors of record on Monday, November 4th were given a dividend of $0.94 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, November 4th. This represents a $3.76 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.05%. Eaton’s payout ratio is 40.00%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, insider Ernest W. Marshall, Jr. sold 1,412 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, November 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $378.58, for a total value of $534,554.96. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 31,200 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $11,811,696. The trade was a 4.33 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, Director Gregory R. Page sold 4,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, November 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $335.30, for a total value of $1,341,200.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 51,422 shares in the company, valued at approximately $17,241,796.60. The trade was a 7.22 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders sold 66,981 shares of company stock worth $24,100,317. 0.53% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Eaton

Institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Breakwater Investment Management raised its holdings in Eaton by 1,560.0% during the second quarter. Breakwater Investment Management now owns 83 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $26,000 after buying an additional 78 shares during the last quarter. Proffitt & Goodson Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Eaton during the second quarter worth about $29,000. Groupama Asset Managment raised its holdings in shares of Eaton by 83.2% in the 3rd quarter. Groupama Asset Managment now owns 9,463 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $31,000 after acquiring an additional 4,298 shares during the last quarter. LGT Financial Advisors LLC bought a new position in Eaton in the 2nd quarter valued at about $33,000. Finally, Morse Asset Management Inc acquired a new position in Eaton during the 3rd quarter valued at about $33,000. 82.97% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.