Eaton Co. plc (NYSE:ETN) Position Trimmed by Vestcor Inc

Vestcor Inc reduced its holdings in Eaton Co. plc (NYSE:ETN) by 5.8% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 7,365 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 453 shares during the quarter. Vestcor Inc’s holdings in Eaton were worth $2,444,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of ETN. Noble Wealth Management PBC acquired a new position in Eaton in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $30,000. Groupama Asset Managment lifted its holdings in shares of Eaton by 83.2% in the 3rd quarter. Groupama Asset Managment now owns 9,463 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $31,000 after purchasing an additional 4,298 shares during the last quarter. Horizon Bancorp Inc. IN boosted its position in Eaton by 321.7% during the 4th quarter. Horizon Bancorp Inc. IN now owns 97 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $32,000 after purchasing an additional 74 shares during the period. Morse Asset Management Inc acquired a new stake in Eaton in the third quarter worth $33,000. Finally, Activest Wealth Management boosted its holdings in shares of Eaton by 621.4% during the fourth quarter. Activest Wealth Management now owns 101 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $34,000 after acquiring an additional 87 shares during the period. 82.97% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

ETN has been the topic of several analyst reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their price target on shares of Eaton from $350.00 to $348.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, January 15th. Royal Bank of Canada lowered their target price on Eaton from $405.00 to $376.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, March 6th. Jefferies Financial Group reduced their price target on Eaton from $390.00 to $335.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday. Citigroup cut their price objective on shares of Eaton from $440.00 to $410.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, January 13th. Finally, Melius lowered shares of Eaton from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and set a $373.00 target price for the company. in a research report on Tuesday, January 28th. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and thirteen have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Eaton presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $356.20.

Eaton Stock Up 3.8 %

Shares of Eaton stock opened at $294.53 on Friday. Eaton Co. plc has a 12-month low of $255.65 and a 12-month high of $379.99. The firm has a market capitalization of $115.45 billion, a PE ratio of 31.00, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.64 and a beta of 1.09. 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 stock’s fifty day moving average is $316.31 and its 200-day moving average is $331.29.

Eaton (NYSE:ETN) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Friday, January 31st. The industrial products company reported $2.83 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.82 by $0.01. Eaton had a return on equity of 22.62% and a net margin of 15.25%. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $2.55 EPS. Equities analysts anticipate that Eaton Co. plc will post 12.02 earnings per share for the current year.

Eaton Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 28th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 10th will be given a dividend of $1.04 per share. This represents a $4.16 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.41%. This is a boost from Eaton’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.94. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 10th. Eaton’s payout ratio is presently 43.79%.

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.