West Branch Capital LLC Sells 787 Shares of Eaton Co. plc (NYSE:ETN)

West Branch Capital LLC lessened its holdings in Eaton Co. plc (NYSE:ETN - Free Report) by 41.2% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 1,121 shares of the industrial products company's stock after selling 787 shares during the quarter. West Branch Capital LLC's holdings in Eaton were worth $305,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its holdings in Eaton by 0.3% in the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 37,217,906 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $12,351,506,000 after purchasing an additional 99,291 shares during the period. FMR LLC raised its position in shares of Eaton by 1.2% during the fourth quarter. FMR LLC now owns 15,222,248 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $5,051,807,000 after acquiring an additional 182,455 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of Eaton by 1.6% in the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 8,198,412 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $2,714,677,000 after acquiring an additional 129,071 shares during the period. Nuveen Asset Management LLC increased its position in Eaton by 4.3% during the 4th quarter. Nuveen Asset Management LLC now owns 4,671,185 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $1,550,226,000 after purchasing an additional 192,482 shares during the period. Finally, Northern Trust Corp raised its holdings in Eaton by 8.8% during the 4th quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 4,574,704 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $1,518,207,000 after purchasing an additional 368,241 shares during the last quarter. 82.97% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts have recently commented on ETN shares. KeyCorp raised their price objective on shares of Eaton from $325.00 to $355.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Monday, May 5th. Wells Fargo & Company restated an "overweight" rating and issued a $355.00 price target on shares of Eaton in a report on Monday, May 5th. Jefferies Financial Group reduced their target price on 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 upped their price target on Eaton from $326.00 to $349.00 and gave the stock an "in-line" rating in a research note on Monday, May 19th. Finally, Barclays raised their price objective on Eaton from $306.00 to $323.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Monday, June 9th. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fifteen have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $368.78.

Eaton Price Performance

Eaton stock traded up $15.23 during midday trading on Monday, reaching $338.89. 1,617,071 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,639,556. The company's fifty day moving average is $304.79 and its 200-day moving average is $314.23. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.46, a quick ratio of 0.96 and a current ratio of 1.50. Eaton Co. plc has a 52 week low of $231.85 and a 52 week high of $379.99. The firm has a market cap of $132.61 billion, a PE ratio of 35.70, a PEG ratio of 2.64 and a beta of 1.16.

Eaton (NYSE:ETN - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Friday, May 2nd. The industrial products company reported $2.72 EPS 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 was up 7.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $2.40 earnings per share. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that Eaton Co. plc will post 12.02 EPS for the current year.

Eaton Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, May 23rd. Stockholders of record on Monday, May 5th were paid a dividend of $1.04 per share. This represents a $4.16 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.23%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, May 5th. Eaton's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 41.98%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, insider Craig Arnold sold 103,486 shares of the firm'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 now directly owns 490,208 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $158,214,632. This trade represents a 17.43% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. 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 value of $629,364.40. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 3,382 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,004,014.34. The trade was a 38.53% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 156,660 shares of company stock valued at $49,622,894 over the last ninety days. 0.30% of the stock is owned by insiders.

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.