Morse Asset Management Inc Boosts Stock Position in Eaton Co. plc (NYSE:ETN)

Morse Asset Management Inc lifted its position in Eaton Co. plc (NYSE:ETN - Free Report) by 1,155.0% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 1,255 shares of the industrial products company's stock after purchasing an additional 1,155 shares during the quarter. Morse Asset Management Inc's holdings in Eaton were worth $416,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Vanguard Group Inc. grew 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 grew its holdings in Eaton by 1.2% in the fourth quarter. FMR LLC now owns 15,222,248 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $5,051,807,000 after purchasing an additional 182,455 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its holdings in 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 valued at $2,714,677,000 after purchasing an additional 129,071 shares during the period. Northern Trust Corp grew its holdings in Eaton by 8.8% in the fourth quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 4,574,704 shares of the industrial products company's stock valued at $1,518,207,000 after purchasing an additional 368,241 shares during the period. Finally, Norges Bank acquired a new stake in Eaton in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $1,495,582,000. 82.97% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts have commented on ETN shares. BNP Paribas Exane started coverage on Eaton in a report on Thursday. They issued an "outperform" rating and a $380.00 price objective on the stock. Evercore ISI lowered their price target on Eaton from $382.00 to $326.00 and set an "in-line" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, February 19th. KeyCorp lifted their price target on Eaton from $325.00 to $355.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Monday, May 5th. BNP Paribas assumed coverage on Eaton in a research note on Thursday. They issued an "outperform" rating and a $380.00 price target on the stock. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price target on Eaton from $300.00 to $360.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Friday. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fourteen have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $366.56.

Eaton Trading Up 0.8%

NYSE:ETN traded up $2.58 on Friday, reaching $329.40. The company's stock had a trading volume of 1,997,137 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,660,386. Eaton Co. plc has a 12-month low of $231.85 and a 12-month high of $379.99. The company has a quick ratio of 0.96, a current ratio of 1.50 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.46. The firm has a market cap of $128.89 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 34.67, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.64 and a beta of 1.14. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $286.47 and a 200 day moving average price of $319.82.

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, 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 quarter in the previous year, the business earned $2.40 earnings per share. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 7.3% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities analysts anticipate that Eaton Co. plc will post 12.02 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Eaton Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 23rd. Investors of record on Monday, May 5th will be issued a $1.04 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, May 5th. This represents a $4.16 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.26%. Eaton's dividend payout ratio is presently 41.98%.

Insider Activity at Eaton

In related news, insider Craig Arnold sold 103,486 shares of the business'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 transaction, the insider now directly owns 490,208 shares of the company's stock, valued at $158,214,632. The trade was a 17.43% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, insider Michael Yelton sold 2,120 shares of the business's stock in a transaction 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 transaction, the insider now directly owns 3,382 shares of the company's stock, valued at $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. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 156,660 shares of company stock worth $49,622,894. 0.30% of the stock is currently owned by company 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.