Woodline Partners LP Reduces Holdings in Eaton Co. plc (NYSE:ETN)

Woodline Partners LP trimmed its stake in shares of Eaton Co. plc (NYSE:ETN - Free Report) by 92.3% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm owned 15,744 shares of the industrial products company's stock after selling 188,330 shares during the quarter. Woodline Partners LP's holdings in Eaton were worth $5,225,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Lighthouse Wealth Management Inc. acquired a new stake in Eaton during the fourth quarter worth about $297,000. Bearing Point Capital LLC bought a new stake in shares of Eaton during the 4th quarter worth approximately $2,713,000. Webster Bank N. A. boosted its position in shares of Eaton by 52.4% during the 4th quarter. Webster Bank N. A. now owns 17,925 shares of the industrial products company's stock worth $5,949,000 after acquiring an additional 6,166 shares in the last quarter. Blue Trust Inc. increased its stake in Eaton by 13.2% in the fourth quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 14,494 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $4,804,000 after acquiring an additional 1,694 shares during the last quarter. Finally, New England Research & Management Inc. raised its position in Eaton by 128.3% during the fourth quarter. New England Research & Management Inc. now owns 3,069 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $1,019,000 after purchasing an additional 1,725 shares in the last quarter. 82.97% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Eaton Trading Up 2.2%

ETN stock traded up $7.04 during midday trading on Tuesday, hitting $328.10. The stock had a trading volume of 1,568,720 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,662,044. The company has a current ratio of 1.50, a quick ratio of 0.96 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.46. The firm has a market cap of $128.39 billion, a P/E ratio of 34.54, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.64 and a beta of 1.14. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $291.21 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $318.44. Eaton Co. plc has a 1-year low of $231.85 and a 1-year high of $379.99.

Eaton (NYSE:ETN - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Friday, May 2nd. The industrial products company reported $2.72 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $2.70 by $0.02. Eaton had a return on equity of 22.62% and a net margin of 15.25%. The company had revenue of $6.38 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.26 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $2.40 EPS. The firm's revenue was up 7.3% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Eaton Co. plc will post 12.02 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Eaton Announces Dividend

The company 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 dividend yield of 1.27%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, May 5th. Eaton's payout ratio is currently 41.98%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages have weighed in on ETN. Wells Fargo & Company reaffirmed an "overweight" rating and issued a $355.00 target price on shares of Eaton in a report on Monday, May 5th. Barclays reduced their price objective on Eaton from $315.00 to $306.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, April 4th. Jefferies Financial Group lowered 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. Melius Research restated a "hold" rating and issued a $373.00 price target on shares of Eaton in a research note on Tuesday, January 28th. Finally, KeyCorp upped 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. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fifteen have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $367.83.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, insider Craig Arnold sold 103,486 shares of the firm'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 of the company's stock, valued at $158,214,632. This trade represents a 17.43% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, insider Michael Yelton sold 2,120 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, May 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $296.87, for a total transaction of $629,364.40. Following the completion of the transaction, 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. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 156,660 shares of company stock worth $49,622,894. 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.