Eaton Co. plc (NYSE:ETN) Given Consensus Rating of “Moderate Buy” by Analysts

Shares of Eaton Co. plc (NYSE:ETN) have received an average rating of “Moderate Buy” from the nineteen brokerages that are presently covering the company, MarketBeat.com reports. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation and fourteen have issued a buy recommendation on the company. The average 1 year price target among brokers that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $368.78.

Several equities analysts have issued reports on ETN shares. Wells Fargo & Company reiterated an “overweight” rating and issued a $355.00 price objective on shares of Eaton in a research report on Monday, May 5th. Wall Street Zen upgraded Eaton from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Sunday, May 18th. Evercore ISI boosted their target price on Eaton from $326.00 to $349.00 and gave the stock an “in-line” rating in a research report on Monday, May 19th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their target price on Eaton from $300.00 to $360.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, May 16th. Finally, Barclays boosted their target price on Eaton from $306.00 to $323.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Monday, June 9th.

Eaton Trading Up 4.4%

Shares of ETN opened at $337.95 on Thursday. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $306.54 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $313.96. 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 has a 52-week low of $231.85 and a 52-week high of $379.99. The company has a market cap of $132.24 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 35.57, a PEG ratio of 2.64 and a beta of 1.16.

Eaton (NYSE:ETN) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Friday, May 2nd. The industrial products company reported $2.72 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.70 by $0.02. Eaton had a return on equity of 22.62% and a net margin of 15.25%. The firm had revenue of $6.38 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.26 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $2.40 EPS. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 7.3% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts predict that Eaton will post 12.02 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Eaton Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, May 23rd. Shareholders of record on Monday, May 5th were paid a $1.04 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Monday, May 5th. This represents a $4.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.23%. Eaton’s payout ratio is 41.98%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Eaton news, insider Michael Yelton sold 2,120 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, May 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $296.87, for a total value of $629,364.40. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 3,382 shares in the company, valued at $1,004,014.34. This represents a 38.53% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, insider Craig Arnold sold 51,054 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, May 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $305.43, for a total value of $15,593,423.22. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 489,444 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $149,490,880.92. This trade represents a 9.45% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 156,660 shares of company stock worth $49,622,894 over the last ninety days. 0.30% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the company. Peterson Wealth Management acquired a new position in shares of Eaton during the first quarter worth about $363,000. First Long Island Investors LLC boosted its position in shares of Eaton by 5,589.2% during the first quarter. First Long Island Investors LLC now owns 54,104 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $14,707,000 after buying an additional 53,153 shares during the period. Modern Wealth Management LLC boosted its position in shares of Eaton by 4.4% during the first quarter. Modern Wealth Management LLC now owns 6,838 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $1,859,000 after buying an additional 288 shares during the period. Anderson Financial Strategies LLC boosted its position in shares of Eaton by 5.0% during the first quarter. Anderson Financial Strategies LLC now owns 1,361 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $370,000 after buying an additional 65 shares during the period. Finally, Strs Ohio acquired a new position in shares of Eaton during the first quarter worth about $24,001,000. 82.97% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.