Associated Banc Corp Cuts Stake in Eaton Corporation, PLC (NYSE:ETN)

Key Points

• Associated Banc Corp reduced its stake in Eaton Corporation by 10.1%, selling 10,667 shares and now holding 94,707 shares valued at approximately $25.7 million.
• Eaton's quarterly earnings surpassed expectations with $2.72 earnings per share and a revenue increase of 7.3% year-over-year, reaching $6.38 billion.
• The company declared a quarterly dividend of $1.04 per share, with an upcoming ex-dividend date on August 7th and an annualized yield of 1.1%.

Associated Banc Corp lowered its stake in Eaton Corporation, PLC (NYSE:ETN - Free Report) by 10.1% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 94,707 shares of the industrial products company's stock after selling 10,667 shares during the quarter. Associated Banc Corp's holdings in Eaton were worth $25,744,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. Capital A Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in Eaton in the 4th quarter worth approximately $26,000. IMA Advisory Services Inc. purchased a new position in Eaton during the first quarter valued at $25,000. Vermillion Wealth Management Inc. bought a new position in Eaton during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $33,000. Creative Financial Designs Inc. ADV boosted its stake in Eaton by 102.0% during the 1st quarter. Creative Financial Designs Inc. ADV now owns 101 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $27,000 after purchasing an additional 51 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Abound Wealth Management increased its holdings in Eaton by 73.8% in the 1st quarter. Abound Wealth Management now owns 146 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $40,000 after buying an additional 62 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 82.97% of the company's stock.

Eaton Stock Up 0.3%

ETN stock traded up $1.11 during trading on Thursday, hitting $359.27. 3,057,623 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,649,040. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $354.13 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $318.34. The company has a quick ratio of 0.84, a current ratio of 1.24 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.47. The firm has a market capitalization of $140.58 billion, a P/E ratio of 36.14, a PEG ratio of 2.70 and a beta of 1.18. Eaton Corporation, PLC has a 1 year low of $231.85 and a 1 year high of $399.56.

Eaton (NYSE:ETN - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, August 5th. The industrial products company reported $2.95 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $2.92 by $0.03. Eaton had a net margin of 15.11% and a return on equity of 23.91%. The business had revenue of $7.03 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $6.93 billion. During the same period last year, the business earned $2.73 EPS. The company's revenue was up 10.7% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Eaton Corporation, PLC will post 12.02 EPS for the current year.

Eaton Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 22nd. Stockholders of record on Thursday, August 7th will be paid a $1.04 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, August 7th. This represents a $4.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.2%. Eaton's dividend payout ratio is presently 41.85%.

Insider Activity at Eaton

In related news, insider Craig Arnold sold 103,486 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Monday, May 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $322.75, for a total value of $33,400,106.50. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider directly owned 490,208 shares in the company, valued at $158,214,632. The trade was a 17.43% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. 0.30% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts have recently commented on ETN shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price target on shares of Eaton from $300.00 to $360.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Friday, May 16th. Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of Eaton from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Saturday, August 2nd. Morgan Stanley lifted their target price on Eaton from $375.00 to $425.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Wednesday. Sanford C. Bernstein reissued an "outperform" rating and set a $396.00 price objective on shares of Eaton in a research note on Monday, July 14th. Finally, Raymond James Financial increased their target price on shares of Eaton from $380.00 to $415.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Thursday. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fourteen have assigned a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $383.63.

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.