American National Bank & Trust Co. VA Buys Shares of 6,010 Eaton Co. plc (NYSE:ETN)

American National Bank & Trust Co. VA bought a new stake in shares of Eaton Co. plc (NYSE:ETN) during the first quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor bought 6,010 shares of the industrial products company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,879,000.

A number of other large investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Park Edge Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Eaton during the 1st quarter valued at about $242,000. Accel Wealth Management lifted its position in Eaton by 57.7% during the 1st quarter. Accel Wealth Management now owns 1,364 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $426,000 after purchasing an additional 499 shares during the period. First Trust Direct Indexing L.P. lifted its position in Eaton by 10.7% during the 1st quarter. First Trust Direct Indexing L.P. now owns 12,339 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $3,858,000 after purchasing an additional 1,194 shares during the period. Norden Group LLC acquired a new position in Eaton during the 1st quarter valued at about $2,176,000. Finally, Bourgeon Capital Management LLC lifted its position in Eaton by 1.0% during the 1st quarter. Bourgeon Capital Management LLC now owns 44,065 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $13,778,000 after purchasing an additional 428 shares during the period. 82.97% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Raymond James assumed coverage on shares of Eaton in a research report on Friday, June 28th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $375.00 price target on the stock. The Goldman Sachs Group increased their price target on shares of Eaton from $287.00 to $328.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, March 15th. HSBC increased their price target on shares of Eaton from $240.00 to $280.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, May 3rd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price target on shares of Eaton from $279.00 to $325.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 1st. Finally, Mizuho reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $355.00 price target (up from $340.00) on shares of Eaton in a research report on Wednesday, May 1st. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have given a hold rating and thirteen have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $318.06.

Eaton Stock Up 1.6 %

Shares of ETN traded up $5.14 during mid-day trading on Thursday, hitting $318.42. 1,122,952 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,060,987. The company has a market cap of $127.30 billion, a PE ratio of 37.59, a P/E/G ratio of 2.64 and a beta of 1.02. Eaton Co. plc has a 52 week low of $191.82 and a 52 week high of $345.19. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $325.43 and a 200 day simple moving average of $294.35. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.42, a current ratio of 1.56 and a quick ratio of 1.05.

Eaton (NYSE:ETN) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 30th. The industrial products company reported $2.40 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.28 by $0.12. The company had revenue of $5.94 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $5.91 billion. Eaton had a net margin of 14.38% and a return on equity of 20.69%. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 8.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the business earned $1.88 EPS. On average, research analysts forecast that Eaton Co. plc will post 10.55 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Eaton Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, May 24th. Stockholders of record on Monday, May 6th were paid a dividend of $0.94 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, May 3rd. This represents a $3.76 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.18%. Eaton’s dividend payout ratio is currently 44.39%.

Insider Transactions at Eaton

In other news, insider Peter Denk sold 2,416 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, May 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $331.84, for a total transaction of $801,725.44. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 5,086 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,687,738.24. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Company insiders own 0.33% 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.