Richard Bernstein Advisors LLC Decreases Holdings in Eaton Corporation, PLC (NYSE:ETN)

Richard Bernstein Advisors LLC trimmed its position in shares of Eaton Corporation, PLC (NYSE:ETN - Free Report) by 4.2% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 19,391 shares of the industrial products company's stock after selling 860 shares during the quarter. Richard Bernstein Advisors LLC's holdings in Eaton were worth $5,271,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of ETN. Capital A Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Eaton in the fourth quarter worth about $26,000. Flagship Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Eaton in the fourth quarter valued at about $27,000. Creative Financial Designs Inc. ADV increased its stake in shares of Eaton by 102.0% in the first quarter. Creative Financial Designs Inc. ADV now owns 101 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $27,000 after buying an additional 51 shares during the period. Murphy & Mullick Capital Management Corp bought a new position in shares of Eaton during the 4th quarter worth approximately $33,000. Finally, Vermillion Wealth Management Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Eaton during the 4th quarter valued at $33,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 82.97% of the company's stock.

Eaton Trading Down 0.6%

NYSE:ETN traded down $2.28 during trading hours on Tuesday, reaching $356.21. The company's stock had a trading volume of 528,828 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,656,830. Eaton Corporation, PLC has a 1 year low of $231.85 and a 1 year high of $379.99. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.41, a quick ratio of 0.84 and a current ratio of 1.31. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $327.78 and a 200-day simple moving average of $312.77. The firm has a market capitalization of $139.38 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 35.94, a PEG ratio of 2.73 and a beta of 1.17.

Eaton (NYSE:ETN - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data 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. Eaton had a net margin of 15.55% and a return on equity of 23.41%. The business had revenue of $6.38 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $6.26 billion. During the same period last year, the company posted $2.40 EPS. The business's revenue was up 7.3% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts expect that Eaton Corporation, PLC will post 12.02 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Eaton Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, May 23rd. Stockholders of record on Monday, May 5th were paid a $1.04 dividend. This represents a $4.16 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.17%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, May 5th. Eaton's payout ratio is 41.98%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts have recently weighed in on ETN shares. Citigroup boosted their price target on Eaton from $323.00 to $351.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Monday, May 5th. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price objective on Eaton from $310.00 to $360.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a report on Tuesday, July 1st. Jefferies Financial Group decreased their target price on shares of Eaton from $390.00 to $335.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, March 12th. Evercore ISI increased their price objective 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. Finally, Barclays lifted their target price on Eaton from $306.00 to $323.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a report on Monday, June 9th. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fourteen have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $369.06.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, insider Michael Yelton sold 2,120 shares of the firm's 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 transaction, the insider 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 sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, insider Craig Arnold sold 103,486 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated 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 sale, the insider directly owned 490,208 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $158,214,632. This trade represents a 17.43% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 156,660 shares of company stock worth $49,622,894 over the last ninety days. Corporate insiders own 0.30% of the company's stock.

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.