Eaton (NYSE:ETN) Stock Price Down 0.9% – Should You Sell?

Eaton Co. plc (NYSE:ETN)’s stock price was down 0.9% during trading on Monday . The company traded as low as $373.78 and last traded at $374.06. Approximately 635,512 shares were traded during trading, a decline of 70% from the average daily volume of 2,099,356 shares. The stock had previously closed at $377.41.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages have weighed in on ETN. Wolfe Research raised shares of Eaton from an “underperform” rating to a “peer perform” rating in a research note on Friday, September 6th. Raymond James reduced their price objective on Eaton from $375.00 to $365.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, September 9th. UBS Group assumed coverage on Eaton in a research note on Wednesday, November 13th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $431.00 target price for the company. Bank of America upped their price target on Eaton from $350.00 to $410.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, November 13th. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein initiated coverage on Eaton in a research report on Tuesday, November 5th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $382.00 price objective for the company. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and thirteen have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Eaton currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $357.83.

Eaton Stock Performance

The stock has a market capitalization of $147.00 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 39.57, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.99 and a beta of 1.01. The stock’s 50 day moving average is $346.61 and its two-hundred day moving average is $323.89. The company has a current ratio of 1.53, a quick ratio of 1.00 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.45.

Eaton (NYSE:ETN) last released its quarterly earnings results 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 return on equity of 21.97% and a net margin of 15.32%. The firm had revenue of $6.35 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.37 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $2.47 EPS. The business’s revenue was up 7.9% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts expect that Eaton Co. plc will post 10.8 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Eaton Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, November 22nd. Stockholders of record on Monday, November 4th were issued a $0.94 dividend. This represents a $3.76 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.01%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, November 4th. Eaton’s payout ratio is 40.00%.

Insider Activity at Eaton

In other news, insider Michael Yelton sold 3,136 shares of Eaton stock in a transaction dated Thursday, August 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $303.12, for a total value of $950,584.32. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 3,914 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,186,411.68. This trade represents a 44.48 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, 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 transaction of $534,554.96. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 31,200 shares in the company, valued at $11,811,696. This represents a 4.33 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 70,117 shares of company stock valued at $25,050,901. 0.33% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Eaton

Institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. IAM Advisory LLC bought a new stake in Eaton in the 2nd quarter valued at $599,000. Interval Partners LP raised its position in shares of Eaton by 82.7% in the second quarter. Interval Partners LP now owns 151,716 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $47,571,000 after purchasing an additional 68,693 shares during the period. Scientech Research LLC lifted its stake in shares of Eaton by 285.5% during the 2nd quarter. Scientech Research LLC now owns 5,744 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $1,801,000 after buying an additional 4,254 shares during the last quarter. B. Riley Wealth Advisors Inc. grew its stake in Eaton by 25.9% in the 2nd quarter. B. Riley Wealth Advisors Inc. now owns 27,609 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $8,657,000 after buying an additional 5,676 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Leavell Investment Management Inc. raised its holdings in Eaton by 67.6% in the 2nd quarter. Leavell Investment Management Inc. now owns 8,556 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $2,683,000 after acquiring an additional 3,452 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds 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.