Analysts Set Eaton Co. plc (NYSE:ETN) PT at $357.83

Eaton Co. plc (NYSE:ETN) has been given a consensus recommendation of “Moderate Buy” by the seventeen analysts that are presently covering the company, MarketBeat reports. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and thirteen have issued a buy rating on the company. The average twelve-month price target among analysts that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $357.83.

Several research analysts have commented on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company raised their target price on shares of Eaton from $315.00 to $342.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Monday, October 7th. Barclays decreased their price objective on shares of Eaton from $327.00 to $320.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, November 1st. Royal Bank of Canada reissued an “outperform” rating and set a $374.00 target price on shares of Eaton in a research note on Friday, November 1st. Wolfe Research raised Eaton from an “underperform” rating to a “peer perform” rating in a research report on Friday, September 6th. Finally, Raymond James lowered their price target on Eaton from $375.00 to $365.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, September 9th.

Eaton Stock Performance

NYSE:ETN opened at $377.23 on Friday. The company has a 50-day moving average of $345.46 and a 200-day moving average of $323.55. The firm has a market cap of $149.08 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 40.13, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.99 and a beta of 1.01. 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 has a twelve month low of $224.52 and a twelve month high of $379.99.

Eaton (NYSE:ETN) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, October 31st. The industrial products company reported $2.84 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.80 by $0.04. The firm had revenue of $6.35 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.37 billion. Eaton had a net margin of 15.32% and a return on equity of 21.97%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 7.9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $2.47 earnings per share. Analysts forecast that Eaton will post 10.8 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Eaton Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, November 22nd. Stockholders of record on Monday, November 4th were issued a dividend of $0.94 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, November 4th. This represents a $3.76 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.00%. Eaton’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 40.00%.

Insider Activity

In other news, insider Ernest W. Marshall, Jr. sold 1,412 shares of Eaton stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, November 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $378.58, for a total value of $534,554.96. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 31,200 shares in the company, valued at approximately $11,811,696. The trade was a 4.33 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, insider Craig Arnold sold 61,569 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, November 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $360.97, for a total value of $22,224,561.93. Following the sale, the insider now owns 506,360 shares in the company, valued at approximately $182,780,769.20. This trade represents a 10.84 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders sold 70,117 shares of company stock valued at $25,050,901. 0.33% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Eaton

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Breakwater Investment Management raised its position in shares of Eaton by 1,560.0% in the 2nd quarter. Breakwater Investment Management now owns 83 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $26,000 after acquiring an additional 78 shares during the period. Proffitt & Goodson Inc. acquired a new stake in Eaton in the second quarter worth $29,000. Morse Asset Management Inc bought a new position in shares of Eaton during the third quarter worth $33,000. LGT Financial Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Eaton in the 2nd quarter valued at $33,000. Finally, West Financial Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Eaton during the 3rd quarter worth $35,000. 82.97% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.