Vanguard Group Inc. Has $10.20 Billion Position in Eaton Corporation, PLC (NYSE:ETN)

Key Points

• Vanguard Group Inc. has increased its stake in Eaton Corporation by 0.8%, now owning approximately 9.57% of the company with a value of around $10.2 billion.
• Analysts have set a consensus target price of $377.89 for Eaton shares, with the majority rating it as a "Moderate Buy," indicating positive market sentiment.
• Eaton recently announced a quarterly dividend of $1.04, reflecting a payout ratio of 41.98% and an annualized dividend yield of 1.2%.

Vanguard Group Inc. increased its position in Eaton Corporation, PLC (NYSE:ETN - Free Report) by 0.8% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 37,507,725 shares of the industrial products company's stock after buying an additional 289,819 shares during the quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. owned about 9.57% of Eaton worth $10,195,725,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. IMA Advisory Services Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Eaton in the 1st quarter worth approximately $25,000. Capital A Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in Eaton during the fourth quarter worth approximately $26,000. Creative Financial Designs Inc. ADV grew its position in Eaton by 102.0% in the first quarter. Creative Financial Designs Inc. ADV now owns 101 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $27,000 after buying an additional 51 shares during the last quarter. Vermillion Wealth Management Inc. bought a new position in shares of Eaton in the fourth quarter valued at $33,000. Finally, Abound Wealth Management lifted its position in shares of Eaton by 73.8% during the 1st quarter. Abound Wealth Management now owns 146 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $40,000 after acquiring an additional 62 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 82.97% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages recently issued reports on ETN. Morgan Stanley lifted their target price on Eaton from $375.00 to $425.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Wednesday. BNP Paribas assumed coverage on Eaton in a research note on Thursday, May 15th. They issued an "outperform" rating and a $380.00 price target on the stock. Sanford C. Bernstein reaffirmed an "outperform" rating and set a $396.00 price objective on shares of Eaton in a research note on Monday, July 14th. Barclays lifted their target price on shares of Eaton from $340.00 to $344.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Wednesday. Finally, Wall Street Zen lowered shares of Eaton from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Saturday, August 2nd. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fourteen have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Eaton has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $383.63.

Eaton Stock Up 0.8%

ETN stock traded up $2.91 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $363.07. The stock had a trading volume of 2,139,096 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,661,468. The stock has a market capitalization of $141.34 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 36.53, a PEG ratio of 2.66 and a beta of 1.18. The company has a current ratio of 1.24, a quick ratio of 0.84 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.47. Eaton Corporation, PLC has a 1-year low of $231.85 and a 1-year high of $399.56. The company has a fifty day moving average of $354.13 and a 200 day moving average of $318.34.

Eaton (NYSE:ETN - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, August 5th. The industrial products company reported $2.95 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $2.92 by $0.03. The firm had revenue of $7.03 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.93 billion. Eaton had a return on equity of 23.91% and a net margin of 15.11%. The firm's revenue was up 10.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $2.73 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts expect that Eaton Corporation, PLC will post 12.02 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Eaton Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 22nd. Stockholders of record on Thursday, August 7th will be issued a dividend of $1.04 per share. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, August 7th. This represents a $4.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.1%. Eaton's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 41.85%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Eaton

In other Eaton news, insider Craig Arnold sold 103,486 shares of the 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 transaction, the insider directly owned 490,208 shares of the company's stock, valued at $158,214,632. This represents a 17.43% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. 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.