Smartleaf Asset Management LLC Raises Position in Eaton Co. plc (NYSE:ETN)

Smartleaf Asset Management LLC boosted its stake in Eaton Co. plc (NYSE:ETN) by 14.0% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 7,553 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after buying an additional 929 shares during the period. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC’s holdings in Eaton were worth $2,510,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. B. Riley Wealth Advisors Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Eaton by 48.9% during the third quarter. B. Riley Wealth Advisors Inc. now owns 41,106 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $13,533,000 after purchasing an additional 13,497 shares during the last quarter. Lighthouse Wealth Management Inc. purchased a new position in Eaton in the 4th quarter worth approximately $297,000. Webster Bank N. A. raised its holdings in Eaton by 52.4% in the 4th quarter. Webster Bank N. A. now owns 17,925 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $5,949,000 after acquiring an additional 6,166 shares during the last quarter. Ballentine Partners LLC raised its holdings in Eaton by 9.3% in the 4th quarter. Ballentine Partners LLC now owns 9,256 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $3,072,000 after acquiring an additional 790 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Blue Trust Inc. raised its holdings in Eaton by 13.2% in the 4th quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 14,494 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $4,804,000 after acquiring an additional 1,694 shares during the last quarter. 82.97% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages recently weighed in on ETN. Wells Fargo & Company restated an “equal weight” rating on shares of Eaton in a report on Thursday, February 13th. UBS Group assumed coverage on shares of Eaton in a research report on Wednesday, November 13th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $431.00 target price for the company. Barclays lifted their target price on shares of Eaton from $320.00 to $353.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Thursday, December 5th. Evercore ISI cut their price objective on shares of Eaton from $382.00 to $326.00 and set an “in-line” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, February 19th. Finally, Citigroup cut their price objective on shares of Eaton from $440.00 to $410.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, January 13th. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and thirteen have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $366.05.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director Gregory R. Page sold 10,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, December 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $355.98, for a total transaction of $3,559,800.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly 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 document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 0.53% of the company’s stock.

Eaton Stock Up 1.0 %

Shares of ETN stock opened at $293.21 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $115.88 billion, a P/E ratio of 30.86, a PEG ratio of 2.64 and a beta of 1.05. Eaton Co. plc has a 52 week low of $255.65 and a 52 week high of $379.99. The company has a quick ratio of 0.96, a current ratio of 1.50 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.46. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $326.90 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $332.55.

Eaton (NYSE:ETN) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Friday, January 31st. The industrial products company reported $2.83 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.82 by $0.01. Eaton had a net margin of 15.25% and a return on equity of 22.62%. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $2.55 EPS. Analysts predict that Eaton Co. plc will post 12.02 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Eaton Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 28th. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 10th will be given a dividend of $1.04 per share. This represents a $4.16 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.42%. This is a boost from Eaton’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.94. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 10th. Eaton’s dividend payout ratio is currently 43.79%.

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.