Eaton (NYSE:ETN) Sets New 12-Month High After Strong Earnings

Shares of Eaton Co. plc (NYSE:ETN) reached a new 52-week high during trading on Tuesday after the company announced better than expected quarterly earnings. The company traded as high as $333.06 and last traded at $323.73, with a volume of 878417 shares changing hands. The stock had previously closed at $326.51.

The industrial products company reported $2.40 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.28 by $0.12. The company had revenue of $5.94 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.91 billion. Eaton had a net margin of 14.38% and a return on equity of 20.69%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 8.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $1.88 EPS.

Eaton Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 24th. Investors of record on Monday, May 6th will be given a dividend of $0.94 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, May 3rd. This represents a $3.76 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.21%. Eaton’s payout ratio is 44.39%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts have issued reports on the company. UBS Group increased their price target on Eaton from $255.00 to $305.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, February 2nd. Bank of America raised their price target on shares of Eaton from $320.00 to $330.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, March 18th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price objective on shares of Eaton from $279.00 to $325.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday. Citigroup raised their target price on Eaton from $270.00 to $310.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, February 2nd. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada raised Eaton from a “sector perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and upped their price target for the stock from $286.00 to $371.00 in a research note on Friday, April 5th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have given a hold rating and twelve have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $302.93.

Insider Transactions at Eaton

In related news, insider Olivier Leonetti sold 4,461 shares of Eaton stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $272.00, for a total transaction of $1,213,392.00. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 630 shares in the company, valued at $171,360. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. In other news, insider Olivier Leonetti sold 4,461 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $272.00, for a total transaction of $1,213,392.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 630 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $171,360. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, insider Ernest W. Marshall, Jr. sold 19,750 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $273.17, for a total value of $5,395,107.50. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 29,712 shares in the company, valued at $8,116,427.04. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 38,969 shares of company stock worth $10,904,774 in the last 90 days. Insiders own 0.53% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its stake in Eaton by 0.7% during the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 36,595,656 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $8,812,966,000 after acquiring an additional 259,615 shares in the last quarter. FMR LLC boosted its holdings in Eaton by 36.0% in the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 19,921,979 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $4,248,960,000 after purchasing an additional 5,270,331 shares during the period. Northern Trust Corp grew its position in shares of Eaton by 2.2% during the 3rd quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 5,009,435 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $1,068,412,000 after purchasing an additional 109,775 shares in the last quarter. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in shares of Eaton in the fourth quarter worth $1,087,983,000. Finally, Coatue Management LLC boosted its stake in Eaton by 5.2% during the fourth quarter. Coatue Management LLC now owns 3,986,445 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $960,016,000 after buying an additional 195,809 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 82.97% of the company’s stock.

Eaton Stock Performance

The company has a 50-day moving average of $307.35 and a 200 day moving average of $260.80. The firm has a market capitalization of $124.66 billion, a PE ratio of 36.84, a PEG ratio of 2.63 and a beta of 1.06. The company has a quick ratio of 1.02, a current ratio of 1.56 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.42.

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.