Eaton Co. plc (NYSE:ETN) Stock Position Decreased by Pinnacle Associates Ltd.

Pinnacle Associates Ltd. cut its stake in shares of Eaton Co. plc (NYSE:ETN) by 4.0% in the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 97,800 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 4,126 shares during the quarter. Pinnacle Associates Ltd.’s holdings in Eaton were worth $30,665,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. Searle & CO. boosted its position in Eaton by 0.9% during the 2nd quarter. Searle & CO. now owns 10,892 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $3,415,000 after purchasing an additional 92 shares during the period. Hantz Financial Services Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Eaton during the second quarter valued at $7,826,000. DiNuzzo Private Wealth Inc. bought a new position in shares of Eaton during the second quarter worth about $37,000. WBI Investments LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Eaton in the 2nd quarter worth about $1,937,000. Finally, International Assets Investment Management LLC boosted its stake in Eaton by 25.7% during the 2nd quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 3,952 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $1,239,000 after purchasing an additional 807 shares during the period. 82.97% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Eaton Trading Up 1.9 %

ETN stock traded up $5.84 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $306.93. 2,320,225 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,169,083. Eaton Co. plc has a 52-week low of $191.82 and a 52-week high of $345.19. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $305.11 and its 200-day moving average is $310.40. The company has a market cap of $122.71 billion, a P/E ratio of 36.24, a P/E/G ratio of 2.47 and a beta of 1.02. The company has a current ratio of 1.56, a quick ratio of 1.05 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.44.

Eaton (NYSE:ETN) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, August 1st. The industrial products company reported $2.73 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.61 by $0.12. Eaton had a net margin of 15.12% and a return on equity of 21.45%. The firm had revenue of $6.35 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.35 billion. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that Eaton Co. plc will post 10.66 earnings per share for the current year.

Eaton Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 23rd. Shareholders of record on Monday, August 5th were paid a dividend of $0.94 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, August 5th. This represents a $3.76 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.23%. Eaton’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 44.39%.

Insider Activity

In related news, insider Taras G. Jr. Szmagala sold 335 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, August 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $288.72, for a total transaction of $96,721.20. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 9,900 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,858,328. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. In other Eaton news, insider Taras G. Jr. Szmagala sold 335 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $288.72, for a total value of $96,721.20. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 9,900 shares in the company, valued at $2,858,328. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, insider Heath B. Monesmith sold 49,040 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated 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 directly owns 71,262 shares in the company, valued at $21,451,287.24. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 52,511 shares of company stock worth $15,809,326 in the last 90 days. Company insiders own 0.53% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

ETN has been the topic of several analyst reports. Raymond James began coverage on shares of Eaton in a research note on Friday, June 28th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $375.00 price target on the stock. Jefferies Financial Group boosted their price target on shares of Eaton from $370.00 to $385.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, July 11th. Royal Bank of Canada decreased their price objective on shares of Eaton from $376.00 to $371.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Friday, August 2nd. HSBC upped their target price on Eaton from $240.00 to $280.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, May 3rd. Finally, Barclays boosted their price objective on Eaton from $318.00 to $319.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Friday, August 2nd. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have given a hold rating and fourteen have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, Eaton presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $328.00.

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.