Austin Private Wealth LLC Makes New Investment in Eaton Co. plc (NYSE:ETN)

Austin Private Wealth LLC purchased a new stake in Eaton Co. plc (NYSE:ETN) in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund purchased 852 shares of the industrial products company’s stock, valued at approximately $205,000.

Several other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in ETN. 1832 Asset Management L.P. raised its position in shares of Eaton by 25.0% during the 2nd quarter. 1832 Asset Management L.P. now owns 604,662 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $121,598,000 after purchasing an additional 120,746 shares during the period. BCS Wealth Management bought a new stake in Eaton in the third quarter valued at $216,000. Sandler Capital Management boosted its holdings in shares of Eaton by 102.2% during the second quarter. Sandler Capital Management now owns 95,768 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $19,259,000 after acquiring an additional 48,410 shares during the period. Neo Ivy Capital Management bought a new position in shares of Eaton during the third quarter worth about $479,000. Finally, Columbia Trust Co 01012016 increased its holdings in shares of Eaton by 6.6% in the 4th quarter. Columbia Trust Co 01012016 now owns 2,269 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $546,000 after acquiring an additional 140 shares during the period. 82.97% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Eaton Price Performance

Shares of ETN traded down $1.72 during trading hours on Thursday, hitting $312.68. 1,977,505 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,779,236. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $280.35 and a 200-day simple moving average of $243.15. The company has a market capitalization of $124.92 billion, a PE ratio of 38.99, a PEG ratio of 2.59 and a beta of 1.07. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.43, a current ratio of 1.51 and a quick ratio of 1.02. Eaton Co. plc has a one year low of $155.38 and a one year high of $317.02.

Eaton (NYSE:ETN) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 1st. The industrial products company reported $2.55 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.47 by $0.08. Eaton had a return on equity of 20.05% and a net margin of 13.88%. The firm had revenue of $5.97 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $5.91 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $2.06 EPS. Eaton’s revenue was up 10.8% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Eaton Co. plc will post 10.25 earnings per share for the current year.

Eaton Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 29th. Investors of record on Monday, March 11th will be given a $0.94 dividend. This represents a $3.76 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.20%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 8th. This is an increase from Eaton’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.86. Eaton’s dividend payout ratio is 46.88%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, insider Olivier Leonetti sold 4,461 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $272.00, for a total value of $1,213,392.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 630 shares in the company, valued at $171,360. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. In other Eaton news, insider Peter Denk sold 1,731 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $288.97, for a total value of $500,207.07. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 5,514 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,593,380.58. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, insider Olivier Leonetti sold 4,461 shares of Eaton stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $272.00, for a total transaction of $1,213,392.00. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 630 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $171,360. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders have sold 38,969 shares of company stock worth $10,904,774. Corporate insiders own 0.53% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts have issued reports on ETN shares. Evercore ISI boosted their target price on shares of Eaton from $262.00 to $308.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 20th. Citigroup increased their price objective on Eaton from $270.00 to $310.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, February 2nd. Bank of America boosted their price target on Eaton from $320.00 to $330.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, March 18th. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price target on Eaton from $220.00 to $257.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Tuesday, December 19th. Finally, UBS Group upped their price objective on shares of Eaton from $255.00 to $305.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, February 2nd. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have given a hold rating and twelve have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $274.20.

About Eaton

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.