Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio Sells 9,079 Shares of Eaton Co. plc (NYSE:ETN)

Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio decreased its position in Eaton Co. plc (NYSE:ETN - Free Report) by 4.8% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 179,094 shares of the industrial products company's stock after selling 9,079 shares during the quarter. Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio's holdings in Eaton were worth $59,436,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Flagship Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Eaton in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Noble Wealth Management PBC acquired a new stake in shares of Eaton in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $30,000. Murphy & Mullick Capital Management Corp bought a new stake in shares of Eaton in the fourth quarter worth $33,000. Activest Wealth Management boosted its holdings in Eaton by 621.4% during the fourth quarter. Activest Wealth Management now owns 101 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $34,000 after purchasing an additional 87 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Knuff & Co LLC bought a new position in Eaton in the fourth quarter valued at $37,000. 82.97% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Eaton Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:ETN traded down $0.96 on Wednesday, hitting $327.20. The company had a trading volume of 706,134 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,654,414. The stock has a market cap of $128.03 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 34.44, a P/E/G ratio of 2.64 and a beta of 1.14. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $291.87 and a 200 day moving average price of $318.50. Eaton Co. plc has a 1-year low of $231.85 and a 1-year high of $379.99. The company has a current ratio of 1.50, a quick ratio of 0.96 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.46.

Eaton (NYSE:ETN - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results 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 business had revenue of $6.38 billion during 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 firm's revenue for the quarter was up 7.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the firm posted $2.40 EPS. Analysts expect that Eaton Co. plc will post 12.02 EPS for the current year.

Eaton Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, May 23rd. Investors of record on Monday, May 5th were given a dividend of $1.04 per share. This represents a $4.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.27%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, May 5th. Eaton's dividend payout ratio is currently 41.98%.

Insider Transactions at Eaton

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 directly owns 490,208 shares in the company, valued at $158,214,632. This represents a 17.43% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, insider Michael Yelton sold 2,120 shares of Eaton stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, May 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $296.87, for a total transaction of $629,364.40. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 3,382 shares in the company, valued at $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. In the last three months, insiders have sold 156,660 shares of company stock valued at $49,622,894. 0.30% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts have recently commented on the stock. BNP Paribas Exane assumed coverage on shares of Eaton in a research note on Thursday, May 15th. They set an "outperform" rating and a $380.00 price objective for the company. BNP Paribas began coverage on Eaton in a report on Thursday, May 15th. They set an "outperform" rating and a $380.00 target price on the stock. Evercore ISI increased their price target on Eaton from $326.00 to $349.00 and gave the company an "in-line" rating in a research report on Monday, May 19th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price objective on Eaton from $300.00 to $360.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Friday, May 16th. Finally, KeyCorp raised their target price on shares of Eaton from $325.00 to $355.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Monday, May 5th. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fifteen have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $367.83.

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.