Eaton Co. plc (NYSE:ETN) Stock Position Cut by Davidson Investment Advisors

Davidson Investment Advisors lessened its stake in Eaton Co. plc (NYSE:ETN) by 0.6% in the second quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 117,113 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 732 shares during the period. Eaton accounts for 1.5% of Davidson Investment Advisors’ portfolio, making the stock its 14th biggest holding. Davidson Investment Advisors’ holdings in Eaton were worth $23,551,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of ETN. Capital Investment Advisory Services LLC boosted its holdings in Eaton by 3.9% in the second quarter. Capital Investment Advisory Services LLC now owns 1,326 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $267,000 after acquiring an additional 50 shares in the last quarter. Strategic Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in Eaton by 0.4% in the second quarter. Strategic Advisors LLC now owns 14,249 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $2,865,000 after acquiring an additional 51 shares in the last quarter. American National Bank boosted its holdings in Eaton by 1.8% in the second quarter. American National Bank now owns 2,934 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $590,000 after acquiring an additional 52 shares in the last quarter. Valmark Advisers Inc. boosted its holdings in Eaton by 1.1% in the second quarter. Valmark Advisers Inc. now owns 4,813 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $968,000 after acquiring an additional 52 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Parallel Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in Eaton by 0.8% in the second quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC now owns 6,240 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $1,255,000 after acquiring an additional 52 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 81.02% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity

In other Eaton news, insider Taras G. Jr. Szmagala sold 1,869 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, August 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $226.68, for a total value of $423,664.92. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 7,431 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,684,459.08. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. In other Eaton news, insider Taras G. Jr. Szmagala sold 1,869 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, August 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $226.68, for a total value of $423,664.92. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 7,431 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,684,459.08. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, insider Thomas B. Okray sold 4,950 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, August 31st. The stock was sold at an average price of $231.09, for a total value of $1,143,895.50. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 7,367 shares in the company, valued at $1,702,440.03. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.53% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Eaton Stock Performance

NYSE:ETN traded down $1.44 during trading hours on Monday, reaching $226.36. The stock had a trading volume of 1,005,317 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,065,491. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.44, a quick ratio of 0.96 and a current ratio of 1.45. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $213.10 and a 200 day simple moving average of $204.76. Eaton Co. plc has a 12-month low of $150.86 and a 12-month high of $240.44. The stock has a market cap of $90.39 billion, a P/E ratio of 30.50, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.18 and a beta of 1.07.

Eaton (NYSE:ETN) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, October 31st. The industrial products company reported $2.47 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.34 by $0.13. The company had revenue of $5.88 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $5.89 billion. Eaton had a return on equity of 19.49% and a net margin of 13.24%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 10.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $2.02 earnings per share. On average, research analysts forecast that Eaton Co. plc will post 9.02 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Eaton Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 24th. Stockholders of record on Monday, November 6th will be given a $0.86 dividend. This represents a $3.44 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.52%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, November 3rd. Eaton’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 46.05%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms have recently weighed in on ETN. HSBC raised their target price on Eaton from $161.00 to $210.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, August 31st. Argus raised their target price on Eaton from $195.00 to $250.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, August 3rd. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their target price on Eaton from $228.00 to $210.00 in a report on Monday, October 9th. Mizuho raised their target price on Eaton from $210.00 to $250.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, August 2nd. Finally, Morgan Stanley lifted their price target on Eaton from $235.00 to $238.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, September 25th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have given a hold rating and seven have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Eaton presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $219.23.

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.