Eaton Co. plc (NYSE:ETN) Shares Sold by Morton Community Bank

Morton Community Bank reduced its position in Eaton Co. plc (NYSE:ETN) by 3.7% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 16,168 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 615 shares during the period. Eaton comprises 1.4% of Morton Community Bank’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 9th biggest position. Morton Community Bank’s holdings in Eaton were worth $5,366,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Wetzel Investment Advisors Inc. boosted its position in Eaton by 0.9% in the fourth quarter. Wetzel Investment Advisors Inc. now owns 3,101 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $1,029,000 after buying an additional 28 shares in the last quarter. Westmount Partners LLC raised its stake in Eaton by 3.1% during the fourth quarter. Westmount Partners LLC now owns 985 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $327,000 after buying an additional 30 shares during the last quarter. Signal Advisors Wealth LLC raised its stake in Eaton by 3.5% during the fourth quarter. Signal Advisors Wealth LLC now owns 896 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $297,000 after buying an additional 30 shares during the last quarter. Lantz Financial LLC grew its holdings in Eaton by 4.8% in the fourth quarter. Lantz Financial LLC now owns 659 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $219,000 after purchasing an additional 30 shares during the period. Finally, Venturi Wealth Management LLC grew its holdings in Eaton by 2.1% in the third quarter. Venturi Wealth Management LLC now owns 1,549 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $513,000 after purchasing an additional 32 shares during the period. 82.97% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Eaton Stock Up 2.8 %

Shares of NYSE ETN opened at $285.29 on Monday. 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 stock has a market capitalization of $111.83 billion, a PE ratio of 30.03, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.64 and a beta of 1.09. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $321.13 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $332.19. Eaton Co. plc has a 12-month low of $255.65 and a 12-month high of $379.99.

Eaton (NYSE:ETN) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Friday, January 31st. The industrial products company reported $2.83 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates 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 previous year, the company posted $2.55 earnings per share. As a group, analysts expect that Eaton Co. plc will post 12.02 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Eaton Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 28th. Investors of record on Monday, March 10th will be issued a $1.04 dividend. This represents a $4.16 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.46%. 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%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director Gregory R. Page sold 10,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, December 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $355.98, for a total value of $3,559,800.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 43,203 shares in the company, valued at approximately $15,379,403.94. This represents a 18.80 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. 0.53% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

ETN has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. Evercore ISI reduced their price objective on shares of Eaton from $382.00 to $326.00 and set an “in-line” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, February 19th. Melius lowered shares of Eaton from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and set a $373.00 target price on the stock. in a report on Tuesday, January 28th. Jefferies Financial Group boosted their price target on shares of Eaton from $400.00 to $440.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, December 6th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price objective on shares of Eaton from $350.00 to $348.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, January 15th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada decreased their price objective on shares of Eaton from $405.00 to $376.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Thursday. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twelve have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $362.58.

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.