Ayrshire Capital Management LLC Boosts Holdings in Eaton Co. plc (NYSE:ETN)

Ayrshire Capital Management LLC grew its position in shares of Eaton Co. plc (NYSE:ETN - Free Report) by 6.6% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 21,939 shares of the industrial products company's stock after purchasing an additional 1,358 shares during the quarter. Eaton makes up about 2.9% of Ayrshire Capital Management LLC's portfolio, making the stock its 20th biggest holding. Ayrshire Capital Management LLC's holdings in Eaton were worth $5,964,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in ETN. Norges Bank purchased a new position in Eaton in the fourth quarter valued at $1,495,582,000. GAMMA Investing LLC increased its stake in shares of Eaton by 27,281.9% in the 1st quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 3,593,321 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $976,772,000 after purchasing an additional 3,580,198 shares in the last quarter. Capital International Investors purchased a new position in shares of Eaton in the 4th quarter valued at about $523,541,000. Proficio Capital Partners LLC increased its stake in shares of Eaton by 42,255.3% in the 4th quarter. Proficio Capital Partners LLC now owns 732,323 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $243,036,000 after purchasing an additional 730,594 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Leigh Baldwin & CO. LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Eaton in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $231,552,000. 82.97% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Transactions at Eaton

In other Eaton news, insider Craig Arnold sold 103,486 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, May 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $322.75, for a total transaction of $33,400,106.50. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 490,208 shares of the company's stock, valued at $158,214,632. This trade represents a 17.43% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, insider Michael Yelton sold 2,120 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, May 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $296.87, for a total transaction of $629,364.40. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 3,382 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,004,014.34. The trade was a 38.53% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 156,660 shares of company stock worth $49,622,894. 0.30% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Eaton Trading Up 1.5%

Shares of ETN traded up $4.83 during mid-day trading on Thursday, reaching $330.54. The stock had a trading volume of 1,199,822 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,637,906. The business's fifty day moving average is $301.79 and its 200 day moving average is $315.72. Eaton Co. plc has a 52-week low of $231.85 and a 52-week high of $379.99. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.46, a current ratio of 1.50 and a quick ratio of 0.96. The firm has a market cap of $129.34 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 34.79, a P/E/G ratio of 2.64 and a beta of 1.16.

Eaton (NYSE:ETN - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Friday, May 2nd. The industrial products company reported $2.72 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.70 by $0.02. The company had revenue of $6.38 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.26 billion. Eaton had a return on equity of 22.62% and a net margin of 15.25%. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 7.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $2.40 earnings per share. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Eaton Co. plc will post 12.02 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Eaton Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, May 23rd. Stockholders of record on Monday, May 5th were issued a dividend of $1.04 per share. This represents a $4.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.26%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, May 5th. Eaton's dividend payout ratio is presently 41.98%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts have recently commented on ETN shares. Wall Street Zen upgraded Eaton from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Sunday, May 18th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price target on shares of Eaton from $300.00 to $360.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Friday, May 16th. KeyCorp boosted their target price on shares of Eaton from $325.00 to $355.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Monday, May 5th. BNP Paribas began coverage on shares of Eaton in a research note on Thursday, May 15th. They set an "outperform" rating and a $380.00 target price for the company. Finally, Evercore ISI boosted their price objective on Eaton from $326.00 to $349.00 and gave the stock an "in-line" rating in a research note on Monday, May 19th. Five analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fifteen have given a buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Eaton has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $368.78.

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.