Eaton Co. plc (NYSE:ETN) Shares Sold by Trillium Asset Management LLC

Trillium Asset Management LLC reduced its stake in shares of Eaton Co. plc (NYSE:ETN) by 4.4% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 142,470 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 6,553 shares during the period. Eaton comprises approximately 1.2% of Trillium Asset Management LLC’s holdings, making the stock its 14th biggest position. Trillium Asset Management LLC’s holdings in Eaton were worth $47,282,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in ETN. Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Eaton by 0.7% in the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 8,069,341 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $2,665,342,000 after buying an additional 56,516 shares during the period. Franklin Resources Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Eaton by 15.1% in the 3rd quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 2,421,626 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $836,938,000 after buying an additional 316,830 shares during the period. Janus Henderson Group PLC boosted its holdings in shares of Eaton by 32.8% in the 3rd quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC now owns 2,419,200 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $801,798,000 after buying an additional 597,700 shares during the period. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Eaton by 253.2% in the 3rd quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 2,273,685 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $753,590,000 after buying an additional 1,629,856 shares during the period. Finally, Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Eaton by 1.7% in the 4th quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 2,255,566 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $748,555,000 after buying an additional 37,138 shares during the period. 82.97% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Eaton Stock Down 2.2 %

ETN stock opened at $290.59 on Wednesday. Eaton Co. plc has a 52 week low of $255.65 and a 52 week high of $379.99. The company has a market capitalization of $113.91 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 30.59, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.64 and a beta of 1.09. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $314.23 and its two-hundred day moving average is $331.66. The company has a current ratio of 1.50, a quick ratio of 0.96 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.46.

Eaton (NYSE:ETN) last released 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 net margin of 15.25% and a return on equity of 22.62%. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $2.55 EPS. On average, analysts forecast that Eaton Co. plc will post 12.02 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Eaton Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced 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 is an increase from Eaton’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.94. This represents a $4.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.43%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 10th. Eaton’s payout ratio is presently 43.79%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms have recently commented on ETN. KeyCorp raised shares of Eaton from a “sector weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and set a $340.00 price target for the company in a report on Wednesday, March 12th. Evercore ISI decreased their price target 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 for the company. in a research note on Tuesday, January 28th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their target price 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, Citigroup reduced their target price on shares of Eaton from $440.00 to $410.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, January 13th. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twelve have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $357.68.

About Eaton

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.