Eaton (NYSE:ETN) Trading 0.2% Higher After Analyst Upgrade

Eaton Co. plc (NYSE:ETN)’s share price was up 0.2% on Wednesday after Barclays raised their price target on the stock from $319.00 to $327.00. Barclays currently has an equal weight rating on the stock. Eaton traded as high as $329.31 and last traded at $328.26. Approximately 238,310 shares changed hands during trading, a decline of 89% from the average daily volume of 2,166,223 shares. The stock had previously closed at $327.58.

Other equities research analysts also recently issued reports about the company. Jefferies Financial Group lifted their price objective on Eaton from $370.00 to $385.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, July 11th. Morgan Stanley initiated coverage on shares of Eaton in a report on Friday, September 6th. They issued an “overweight” rating and a $370.00 price target on the stock. Raymond James decreased their price objective on shares of Eaton from $375.00 to $365.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Monday, September 9th. Royal Bank of Canada cut their target price on shares of Eaton from $376.00 to $371.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, August 2nd. Finally, Evercore ISI lowered their price objective on Eaton from $357.00 to $333.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Monday, August 19th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fourteen have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Eaton has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $337.88.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Director Dorothy C. Thompson acquired 2,205 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, September 3rd. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $300.30 per share, for a total transaction of $662,161.50. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director now owns 2,205 shares in the company, valued at $662,161.50. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. In other Eaton news, Director Dorothy C. Thompson bought 2,205 shares of Eaton stock in a transaction on Tuesday, September 3rd. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $300.30 per share, for a total transaction of $662,161.50. Following the completion of the purchase, the director now directly owns 2,205 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $662,161.50. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, insider Michael Yelton sold 3,136 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, August 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $303.12, for a total value of $950,584.32. Following the sale, the insider now owns 3,914 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,186,411.68. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 52,511 shares of company stock worth $15,809,326 in the last quarter. 0.53% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Trading of Eaton

Large investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. LifeSteps Financial Inc. bought a new stake in Eaton during the first quarter valued at about $25,000. Breakwater Investment Management increased its position in Eaton by 1,560.0% in the 2nd 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 period. Atwood & Palmer Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Eaton by 142.9% during the first quarter. Atwood & Palmer Inc. now owns 85 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $27,000 after buying an additional 50 shares during the last quarter. Proffitt & Goodson Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Eaton in the second quarter worth $29,000. Finally, Redmont Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new position in Eaton during the first quarter worth $33,000. 82.97% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Eaton Trading Up 0.3 %

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.44, a quick ratio of 1.07 and a current ratio of 1.56. The company’s 50 day moving average is $301.36 and its 200 day moving average is $314.25. The stock has a market capitalization of $131.42 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 38.77, a PEG ratio of 2.53 and a beta of 1.01.

Eaton (NYSE:ETN) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, August 1st. The industrial products company reported $2.73 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.61 by $0.12. Eaton had a net margin of 15.12% and a return on equity of 21.45%. The business had revenue of $6.35 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.35 billion. On average, research analysts forecast that Eaton Co. plc will post 10.75 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Eaton Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 23rd. Investors of record on Monday, August 5th were paid a $0.94 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, August 5th. This represents a $3.76 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.14%. Eaton’s payout ratio is 44.39%.

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.