Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. Raises Position in Eaton Co. plc (NYSE:ETN)

Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. increased its stake in Eaton Co. plc (NYSE:ETN) by 2.9% in the third quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 1,422,189 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after purchasing an additional 40,078 shares during the quarter. Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc.’s holdings in Eaton were worth $471,370,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of ETN. WealthPlan Investment Management LLC acquired a new position in Eaton during the third quarter worth $264,000. Patron Partners LLC increased its position in shares of Eaton by 6.1% in the third quarter. Patron Partners LLC now owns 2,801 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $928,000 after buying an additional 160 shares in the last quarter. GSA Capital Partners LLP purchased a new stake in shares of Eaton in the 3rd quarter worth about $295,000. Entropy Technologies LP lifted its holdings in shares of Eaton by 67.5% in the third quarter. Entropy Technologies LP now owns 16,018 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $5,309,000 after purchasing an additional 6,456 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Nations Financial Group Inc. IA ADV grew its position in shares of Eaton by 72.2% in the third quarter. Nations Financial Group Inc. IA ADV now owns 3,419 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $1,133,000 after purchasing an additional 1,434 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 82.97% of the company’s stock.

Insider Transactions at Eaton

In other Eaton news, insider Heath B. Monesmith sold 49,040 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, August 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $301.02, for a total value of $14,762,020.80. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 71,262 shares in the company, valued at $21,451,287.24. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. In related news, Director Karenann K. Terrell purchased 500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, August 21st. The stock was acquired at an average price of $298.97 per share, for a total transaction of $149,485.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the director now owns 500 shares in the company, valued at approximately $149,485. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, insider Heath B. Monesmith sold 49,040 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, August 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $301.02, for a total value of $14,762,020.80. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 71,262 shares in the company, valued at approximately $21,451,287.24. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 117,745 shares of company stock valued at $39,278,367 over the last quarter. Company insiders own 0.53% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several brokerages recently issued reports on ETN. Royal Bank of Canada restated an “outperform” rating and set a $374.00 price objective on shares of Eaton in a research report on Friday, November 1st. Citigroup initiated coverage on Eaton in a research note on Monday, September 16th. They set a “buy” rating and a $348.00 price objective on the stock. Morgan Stanley assumed coverage on shares of Eaton in a report on Friday, September 6th. They issued an “overweight” rating and a $370.00 target price on the stock. Sanford C. Bernstein initiated coverage on shares of Eaton in a research report on Tuesday, November 5th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $382.00 price objective for the company. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price target on Eaton from $315.00 to $342.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Monday, October 7th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fourteen have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Eaton presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $343.28.

Eaton Price Performance

ETN stock opened at $371.95 on Tuesday. The company has a market cap of $146.99 billion, a PE ratio of 39.57, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.94 and a beta of 1.01. Eaton Co. plc has a 12-month low of $220.24 and a 12-month high of $373.39. The company has a current ratio of 1.53, a quick ratio of 1.00 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.45. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $329.60 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $320.18.

Eaton (NYSE:ETN) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 31st. The industrial products company reported $2.84 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.80 by $0.04. The company had revenue of $6.35 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.37 billion. Eaton had a net margin of 15.32% and a return on equity of 21.97%. Eaton’s revenue for the quarter was up 7.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $2.47 earnings per share. As a group, research analysts predict that Eaton Co. plc will post 10.79 EPS for the current year.

Eaton Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 22nd. Shareholders of record on Monday, November 4th will be paid a dividend of $0.94 per share. This represents a $3.76 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.01%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, November 4th. Eaton’s dividend payout ratio is presently 40.00%.

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.