Eaton Corporation, PLC (NYSE:ETN) Holdings Increased by SFE Investment Counsel

SFE Investment Counsel increased its position in shares of Eaton Corporation, PLC (NYSE:ETN - Free Report) by 37.8% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 12,717 shares of the industrial products company's stock after purchasing an additional 3,490 shares during the period. SFE Investment Counsel's holdings in Eaton were worth $3,457,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of ETN. IMA Advisory Services Inc. purchased a new position in Eaton during the first quarter valued at $25,000. Capital A Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in Eaton during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Creative Financial Designs Inc. ADV grew its holdings in Eaton by 102.0% during the 1st 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 in the last quarter. Murphy & Mullick Capital Management Corp purchased a new position in shares of Eaton in the fourth quarter valued at $33,000. Finally, Vermillion Wealth Management Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Eaton in the 4th quarter worth $33,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 82.97% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts recently issued reports on the company. KeyCorp boosted their price objective on Eaton from $355.00 to $410.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Tuesday, July 15th. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price objective on shares of Eaton from $310.00 to $360.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 1st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price objective on shares of Eaton from $300.00 to $360.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Friday, May 16th. BNP Paribas Exane began coverage on Eaton in a research report on Thursday, May 15th. They set an "outperform" rating and a $380.00 price target for the company. Finally, Wall Street Zen upgraded Eaton from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Saturday, July 5th. Six analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fifteen have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $377.89.

Eaton Stock Up 1.9%

NYSE:ETN traded up $7.39 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $392.29. The stock had a trading volume of 2,106,513 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,016,849. The company has a current ratio of 1.31, a quick ratio of 0.84 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.41. Eaton Corporation, PLC has a 1-year low of $231.85 and a 1-year high of $393.07. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $344.57 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $316.02. The company has a market cap of $153.50 billion, a PE ratio of 39.59, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.96 and a beta of 1.17.

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, beating 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 analyst estimates of $6.26 billion. During the same period last year, the business earned $2.40 EPS. The business's revenue was up 7.3% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts predict that Eaton Corporation, PLC will post 12.02 EPS for the current year.

Eaton Announces Dividend

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

Insider Activity at Eaton

In other news, insider Michael Yelton sold 2,120 shares of Eaton stock in a transaction that occurred on 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 transaction, the insider owned 3,382 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,004,014.34. This trade represents a 38.53% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, insider Craig Arnold sold 103,486 shares of the 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 sale, the insider directly owned 490,208 shares in the company, valued at $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. In the last quarter, insiders sold 156,660 shares of company stock valued at $49,622,894. Insiders own 0.30% of the company's stock.

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.