Eaton Co. plc (NYSE:ETN) Shares Sold by Commerce Bank

Commerce Bank trimmed its stake in shares of Eaton Co. plc (NYSE:ETN) by 4.4% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 258,143 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 11,965 shares during the quarter. Commerce Bank’s holdings in Eaton were worth $62,166,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the stock. Ritholtz Wealth Management raised its stake in shares of Eaton by 5.1% in the 4th quarter. Ritholtz Wealth Management now owns 5,724 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $1,379,000 after buying an additional 277 shares in the last quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. raised its stake in shares of Eaton by 30.5% in the 4th quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. now owns 34,071 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $8,205,000 after buying an additional 7,964 shares in the last quarter. Chicago Capital LLC bought a new stake in shares of Eaton in the 4th quarter worth $2,958,000. Spire Wealth Management raised its stake in shares of Eaton by 66.0% in the 4th quarter. Spire Wealth Management now owns 14,914 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $3,648,000 after buying an additional 5,932 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Neo Ivy Capital Management bought a new stake in shares of Eaton in the 3rd quarter worth $479,000. 82.97% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts recently issued reports on ETN shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their target price on Eaton from $279.00 to $325.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, May 1st. Argus lifted their target price on Eaton from $290.00 to $350.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, May 2nd. Barclays upgraded Eaton from an “underweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and lifted their target price for the stock from $250.00 to $300.00 in a report on Tuesday, April 2nd. Mizuho restated a “buy” rating and issued a $355.00 target price (up from $340.00) on shares of Eaton in a report on Wednesday, May 1st. Finally, Berenberg Bank lifted their price target on Eaton from $200.00 to $345.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, March 6th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have issued a hold rating and twelve have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $314.27.

Insider Activity

In related news, insider Heath B. Monesmith sold 13,027 shares of Eaton stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $291.40, for a total transaction of $3,796,067.80. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 69,472 shares in the company, valued at $20,244,140.80. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. In other news, insider Heath B. Monesmith sold 13,027 shares of Eaton stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $291.40, for a total value of $3,796,067.80. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 69,472 shares in the company, valued at $20,244,140.80. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, insider Peter Denk sold 1,731 shares of Eaton stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $288.97, for a total transaction of $500,207.07. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 5,514 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,593,380.58. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 17,174 shares of company stock worth $5,098,000 in the last quarter. Corporate insiders own 0.53% of the company’s stock.

Eaton Trading Up 0.4 %

Eaton stock traded up $1.51 during mid-day trading on Thursday, hitting $337.69. 1,283,989 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,976,295. The firm has a market capitalization of $135.01 billion, a P/E ratio of 39.68, a PEG ratio of 2.82 and a beta of 1.06. Eaton Co. plc has a fifty-two week low of $167.33 and a fifty-two week high of $344.00. The company has a quick ratio of 1.05, a current ratio of 1.56 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.42. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $318.69 and its 200-day simple moving average is $274.05.

Eaton (NYSE:ETN) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, April 30th. The industrial products company reported $2.40 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.28 by $0.12. The firm had revenue of $5.94 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $5.91 billion. Eaton had a return on equity of 20.69% and a net margin of 14.38%. The company’s revenue was up 8.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $1.88 EPS. On average, equities analysts anticipate that Eaton Co. plc will post 10.56 earnings per share for the current year.

Eaton Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 24th. Stockholders of record on Monday, May 6th will be issued a $0.94 dividend. This represents a $3.76 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.11%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, May 3rd. 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.