Meyer Handelman Co. Sells 6,077 Shares of Eaton Co. plc (NYSE:ETN)

Meyer Handelman Co. reduced its position in shares of Eaton Co. plc (NYSE:ETN - Free Report) by 5.2% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 110,479 shares of the industrial products company's stock after selling 6,077 shares during the period. Meyer Handelman Co.'s holdings in Eaton were worth $30,032,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

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

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms have issued reports on ETN. Wall Street Zen upgraded Eaton from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Sunday, May 18th. BNP Paribas assumed coverage on Eaton in a report on Thursday, May 15th. They issued an "outperform" rating and a $380.00 price objective on the stock. KeyCorp increased their price objective on Eaton from $325.00 to $355.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Monday, May 5th. Morgan Stanley reduced their target price on Eaton from $385.00 to $375.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, May 6th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada boosted their price target on shares of Eaton from $336.00 to $356.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Monday, May 5th. Five analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fifteen have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Eaton currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $367.83.

Eaton Price Performance

ETN traded down $1.15 during trading on Monday, reaching $319.05. 1,929,101 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,667,453. The company has a market cap of $124.84 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 33.58, a P/E/G ratio of 2.64 and a beta of 1.14. The company has a quick ratio of 0.96, a current ratio of 1.50 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.46. The company's 50-day moving average is $293.29 and its two-hundred day moving average is $317.22. Eaton Co. plc has a 12-month low of $231.85 and a 12-month high of $379.99.

Eaton (NYSE:ETN - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly 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 business had revenue of $6.38 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $6.26 billion. Eaton had a return on equity of 22.62% and a net margin of 15.25%. The business's quarterly revenue was up 7.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $2.40 EPS. Research analysts forecast that Eaton Co. plc will post 12.02 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Eaton Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, May 23rd. Shareholders of record on Monday, May 5th were issued a $1.04 dividend. This represents a $4.16 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.30%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, May 5th. Eaton's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 41.98%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, insider Craig Arnold sold 103,486 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Monday, May 12th. The stock was 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 now owns 490,208 shares in the company, valued at approximately $158,214,632. This represents a 17.43% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, insider Michael Yelton sold 2,120 shares of the company's 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 owns 3,382 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,004,014.34. The trade was a 38.53% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 156,660 shares of company stock valued at $49,622,894. 0.30% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

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.