Eaton (NYSE:ETN) Shares Down 0.3% – Should You Sell?

Eaton Co. plc (NYSE:ETN)’s share price was down 0.3% during trading on Monday . The company traded as low as $353.75 and last traded at $354.87. Approximately 284,622 shares were traded during mid-day trading, a decline of 86% from the average daily volume of 2,074,729 shares. The stock had previously closed at $356.01.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several brokerages have recently issued reports on ETN. Mizuho raised their target price on shares of Eaton from $365.00 to $385.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, November 1st. 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 price objective on the stock. Wolfe Research upgraded shares of Eaton from an “underperform” rating to a “peer perform” rating in a report on Friday, September 6th. Royal Bank of Canada reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and set a $374.00 price target on shares of Eaton in a research report on Friday, November 1st. Finally, Bank of America boosted their target price on Eaton from $350.00 to $410.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, November 13th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and thirteen have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Eaton currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $367.83.

Eaton Stock Down 0.2 %

The company has a market capitalization of $140.36 billion, a PE ratio of 37.75, a P/E/G ratio of 2.74 and a beta of 1.03. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.45, a quick ratio of 1.00 and a current ratio of 1.53. The company’s 50-day moving average is $355.79 and its 200 day moving average is $326.58.

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

Eaton Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, November 22nd. Shareholders of record on Monday, November 4th were given a $0.94 dividend. This represents a $3.76 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.06%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, November 4th. Eaton’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 40.00%.

Insider Activity at Eaton

In other news, insider Ernest W. Marshall, Jr. sold 1,412 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, November 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $378.58, for a total transaction of $534,554.96. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 31,200 shares in the company, valued at $11,811,696. This trade represents a 4.33 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, insider Craig Arnold sold 61,569 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, November 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $360.97, for a total transaction of $22,224,561.93. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 506,360 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $182,780,769.20. This represents a 10.84 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 66,981 shares of company stock worth $24,100,317. 0.53% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Eaton

A number of hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the business. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC raised its position in shares of Eaton by 253.2% during the third quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 2,273,685 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $753,590,000 after buying an additional 1,629,856 shares during the last quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC lifted its position in shares of Eaton by 27,075.5% in the third quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 1,073,976 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $355,959,000 after buying an additional 1,070,024 shares in the last quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC boosted its stake in Eaton by 32.8% during the third quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC now owns 2,419,200 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $801,798,000 after buying an additional 597,700 shares during the last quarter. Wulff Hansen & CO. grew its holdings in Eaton by 31,255.0% during the 2nd quarter. Wulff Hansen & CO. now owns 478,164 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $149,928,000 after buying an additional 476,639 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Electron Capital Partners LLC raised its stake in Eaton by 8,348.9% during the second quarter. Electron Capital Partners LLC now owns 446,524 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $140,008,000 after purchasing an additional 441,239 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 82.97% of the company’s stock.

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.