US Bancorp DE Increases Stake in Eaton Co. plc (NYSE:ETN)

US Bancorp DE raised its holdings in shares of Eaton Co. plc (NYSE:ETN) by 5.8% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 304,757 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after buying an additional 16,674 shares during the quarter. US Bancorp DE owned about 0.08% of Eaton worth $101,140,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of ETN. Focus Financial Network Inc. lifted its position in Eaton by 22.8% during the third quarter. Focus Financial Network Inc. now owns 2,197 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $728,000 after buying an additional 408 shares in the last quarter. Gladstone Institutional Advisory LLC increased its stake in shares of Eaton by 493.1% in the 3rd quarter. Gladstone Institutional Advisory LLC now owns 9,768 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $3,237,000 after acquiring an additional 8,121 shares during the last quarter. Capital Advisors Inc. OK raised its holdings in shares of Eaton by 2.4% during the 3rd quarter. Capital Advisors Inc. OK now owns 70,491 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $23,364,000 after acquiring an additional 1,629 shares during the period. Farther Finance Advisors LLC boosted its position in shares of Eaton by 4.9% during the 3rd quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 8,268 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $2,740,000 after acquiring an additional 389 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Chicago Partners Investment Group LLC grew its holdings in shares of Eaton by 100.9% in the third quarter. Chicago Partners Investment Group LLC now owns 3,078 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $1,062,000 after purchasing an additional 1,546 shares during the period. 82.97% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director Gregory R. Page sold 10,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, December 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $355.98, for a total value of $3,559,800.00. Following the sale, the director now owns 43,203 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $15,379,403.94. This trade represents a 18.80 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Company insiders own 0.53% of the company’s stock.

Eaton Trading Up 1.0 %

NYSE ETN opened at $293.21 on Friday. Eaton Co. plc has a one year low of $255.65 and a one year high of $379.99. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $326.90 and a 200-day simple moving average of $332.55. The firm has a market cap of $115.88 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 30.86, a PEG ratio of 2.64 and a beta of 1.05. 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 (NYSE:ETN) last posted its quarterly earnings results 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 period in the prior year, the business earned $2.55 earnings per share. Equities research analysts anticipate that Eaton Co. plc will post 12.02 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Eaton Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 28th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 10th will be given a $1.04 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 10th. This represents a $4.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.42%. This is a positive change from Eaton’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.94. Eaton’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 43.79%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities analysts have commented on ETN shares. UBS Group started coverage on shares of Eaton in a research note on Wednesday, November 13th. They set a “buy” rating and a $431.00 target price on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price target on shares of Eaton from $350.00 to $348.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, January 15th. Melius lowered Eaton from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and set a $373.00 price objective for the company. in a research report on Tuesday, January 28th. Jefferies Financial Group lifted their target price on Eaton from $400.00 to $440.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, December 6th. Finally, Bank of America increased their price target on Eaton from $350.00 to $410.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, November 13th. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and thirteen have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Eaton has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $366.05.

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.