Steward Partners Investment Advisory LLC Boosts Position in Eaton Co. plc (NYSE:ETN)

Steward Partners Investment Advisory LLC grew its holdings in shares of Eaton Co. plc (NYSE:ETN) by 6.9% during the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 142,552 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after acquiring an additional 9,179 shares during the quarter. Steward Partners Investment Advisory LLC’s holdings in Eaton were worth $47,309,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in the business. B. Riley Wealth Advisors Inc. boosted its position 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 in the last quarter. Lighthouse Wealth Management Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Eaton during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $297,000. Webster Bank N. A. boosted its position in shares of Eaton by 52.4% during the fourth quarter. Webster Bank N. A. now owns 17,925 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $5,949,000 after purchasing an additional 6,166 shares in the last quarter. Ballentine Partners LLC boosted its position in shares of Eaton by 9.3% during the fourth quarter. Ballentine Partners LLC now owns 9,256 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $3,072,000 after purchasing an additional 790 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Blue Trust Inc. boosted its position in shares of Eaton by 13.2% during the fourth quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 14,494 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $4,804,000 after purchasing an additional 1,694 shares in the last quarter. 82.97% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Eaton Stock Down 5.3 %

Eaton stock opened at $277.71 on Tuesday. The stock has a market cap of $109.75 billion, a PE ratio of 29.23, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.64 and a beta of 1.05. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.46, a quick ratio of 0.96 and a current ratio of 1.50. Eaton Co. plc has a one year low of $255.65 and a one year high of $379.99. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $325.70 and a 200 day moving average of $332.62.

Eaton (NYSE:ETN) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Friday, January 31st. The industrial products company reported $2.83 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates 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 quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $2.55 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Eaton Co. plc will post 12.02 EPS for the current year.

Eaton Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 28th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 10th will be given a $1.04 dividend. This is a boost from Eaton’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.94. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 10th. This represents a $4.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.50%. Eaton’s dividend payout ratio is presently 43.79%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms have commented on ETN. Bank of America boosted their target price on Eaton from $350.00 to $410.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, November 13th. Wells Fargo & Company reissued an “equal weight” rating on shares of Eaton in a report on Thursday, February 13th. Sanford C. Bernstein began coverage on Eaton in a report on Tuesday, November 5th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $382.00 target price on the stock. UBS Group began coverage on Eaton in a report on Wednesday, November 13th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $431.00 target price on the stock. Finally, Melius Research reissued a “hold” rating and issued a $373.00 target price on shares of Eaton in a report on Tuesday, January 28th. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and thirteen have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Eaton currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $364.65.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Eaton news, Director Gregory R. Page sold 10,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, December 13th. The stock was 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 $15,379,403.94. This represents a 18.80 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Company insiders own 0.53% 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.