Greenwood Capital Associates LLC Invests $3.82 Million in Eaton Co. plc (NYSE:ETN)

Greenwood Capital Associates LLC purchased a new position in shares of Eaton Co. plc (NYSE:ETN) during the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm purchased 11,522 shares of the industrial products company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,824,000.

Other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Groupama Asset Managment grew its position in Eaton by 83.2% during the 3rd quarter. Groupama Asset Managment now owns 9,463 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $31,000 after purchasing an additional 4,298 shares during the last quarter. Horizon Bancorp Inc. IN grew its holdings in shares of Eaton by 321.7% during the fourth quarter. Horizon Bancorp Inc. IN now owns 97 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $32,000 after buying an additional 74 shares during the last quarter. Morse Asset Management Inc acquired a new position in Eaton in the 3rd quarter valued at about $33,000. West Financial Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Eaton during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $35,000. Finally, DT Investment Partners LLC purchased a new position in shares of Eaton in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $37,000. 82.97% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Eaton Stock Performance

Shares of ETN stock opened at $315.68 on Tuesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.46, a quick ratio of 0.96 and a current ratio of 1.50. The stock has a market capitalization of $124.76 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 33.23, a PEG ratio of 2.27 and a beta of 1.05. Eaton Co. plc has a one year low of $255.65 and a one year high of $379.99. The company’s 50-day simple moving average is $349.23 and its 200-day simple moving average is $331.21.

Eaton (NYSE:ETN) last issued its earnings results on Friday, January 31st. The industrial products company reported $2.83 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.82 by $0.01. Eaton had a return on equity of 22.62% and a net margin of 15.25%. During the same period last year, the firm earned $2.55 EPS. Equities analysts anticipate that Eaton Co. plc will post 12 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several brokerages recently weighed in on ETN. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price target on Eaton from $350.00 to $335.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Monday. Evercore ISI cut shares of Eaton from an “outperform” rating to an “inline” rating and upped their price target for the stock from $333.00 to $389.00 in a research note on Wednesday, November 13th. Sanford C. Bernstein assumed coverage on Eaton in a research note on Tuesday, November 5th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $382.00 price objective on the stock. Mizuho upped their price objective on shares of Eaton from $365.00 to $385.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, November 1st. Finally, Citigroup reduced their target price on Eaton from $440.00 to $410.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, January 13th. Six analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and thirteen have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $369.20.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director Gregory R. Page sold 10,000 shares of the company’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 completion of the sale, the director now owns 43,203 shares in the company, valued at approximately $15,379,403.94. This represents a 18.80 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, insider Ernest W. Marshall, Jr. sold 1,412 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, November 25th. The stock was 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 directly 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 disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 72,981 shares of company stock worth $26,318,917 in the last three months. 0.33% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Eaton 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.