Eaton Corporation, PLC (NYSE:ETN) Shares Sold by Navellier & Associates Inc.

Key Points

• Navellier & Associates Inc. drastically reduced its stake in Eaton Corporation by 95.4%, owning only 1,005 shares after selling 20,634 shares in the first quarter.
• Despite the sell-off by Navellier, several other institutional investors increased their holdings in Eaton, with Nicholas Wealth LLC boosting its stake by 13% during the same period.
• Eaton recently announced a quarterly dividend of $1.04 per share, representing an annual yield of 1.06%, while the company’s earnings for the last quarter exceeded analysts' expectations.

Navellier & Associates Inc. decreased its stake in shares of Eaton Corporation, PLC (NYSE:ETN - Free Report) by 95.4% in the first quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 1,005 shares of the industrial products company's stock after selling 20,634 shares during the quarter. Navellier & Associates Inc.'s holdings in Eaton were worth $300,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. GAMMA Investing LLC boosted its stake in Eaton by 0.7% in the first quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 13,219 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $3,593,000 after acquiring an additional 96 shares in the last quarter. Bearing Point Capital LLC acquired a new stake in Eaton in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $2,713,000. Brighton Jones LLC boosted its stake in Eaton by 4.9% in the first quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 3,505 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $953,000 after acquiring an additional 164 shares in the last quarter. Kennebec Savings Bank raised its holdings in shares of Eaton by 5.4% in the first quarter. Kennebec Savings Bank now owns 2,715 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $738,000 after buying an additional 139 shares during the last quarter. Finally, American National Bank & Trust raised its holdings in shares of Eaton by 5.4% in the first quarter. American National Bank & Trust now owns 3,145 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $855,000 after buying an additional 162 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 82.97% of the company's stock.

Insider Activity at Eaton

In other news, insider Craig Arnold sold 103,486 shares of Eaton stock in a transaction on 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 sale, the insider directly owned 490,208 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $158,214,632. The trade was a 17.43% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, insider Michael Yelton sold 2,120 shares of Eaton stock in a transaction 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 sale, the insider directly owned 3,382 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,004,014.34. This trade represents a 38.53% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 156,660 shares of company stock worth $49,622,894. 0.30% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Eaton Trading Up 0.2%

ETN stock traded up $0.81 during trading on Monday, reaching $392.98. 2,334,412 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 3,069,770. The company has a current ratio of 1.31, a quick ratio of 0.84 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.41. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $344.57 and a 200-day moving average price of $315.82. Eaton Corporation, PLC has a 1 year low of $231.85 and a 1 year high of $399.56. The firm has a market capitalization of $153.77 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 39.65, a P/E/G ratio of 2.96 and a beta of 1.17.

Eaton (NYSE:ETN - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Friday, May 2nd. The industrial products company reported $2.72 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $2.70 by $0.02. The company had revenue of $6.38 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.26 billion. Eaton had a net margin of 15.55% and a return on equity of 23.41%. Eaton's quarterly revenue was up 7.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $2.40 earnings per share. On average, research analysts predict that Eaton Corporation, PLC will post 12.02 earnings per share for the current year.

Eaton Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 22nd. Investors of record on Thursday, August 7th will be paid a dividend of $1.04 per share. This represents a $4.16 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.06%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, August 7th. Eaton's payout ratio is currently 41.98%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms have issued reports on ETN. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price target on shares of Eaton from $310.00 to $360.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a report on Tuesday, July 1st. BNP Paribas began coverage on shares of Eaton in a report on Thursday, May 15th. They issued an "outperform" rating and a $380.00 price target for the company. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Eaton from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Saturday, July 5th. Morgan Stanley reduced their target price on shares of Eaton from $385.00 to $375.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, May 6th. Finally, Evercore ISI raised their target price on shares of Eaton from $326.00 to $349.00 and gave the stock an "in-line" rating in a report on Monday, May 19th. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fifteen have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $377.89.

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.