Eaton Co. plc (NYSE:ETN) Receives $335.18 Consensus Target Price from Analysts

Eaton Co. plc (NYSE:ETN) has received a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” from the seventeen ratings firms that are covering the firm, Marketbeat.com reports. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and thirteen have issued a buy rating on the company. The average 12-month price objective among brokers that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $335.18.

A number of equities research analysts have recently issued reports on ETN shares. Morgan Stanley started coverage on shares of Eaton in a research report on Friday, September 6th. They set an “overweight” rating and a $370.00 price objective for the company. Jefferies Financial Group increased their price objective 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. Raymond James reduced their price objective on shares of Eaton from $375.00 to $365.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, September 9th. Royal Bank of Canada reduced their price objective on shares of Eaton from $376.00 to $371.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, August 2nd. Finally, Barclays increased their price objective on shares of Eaton from $318.00 to $319.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Friday, August 2nd.

Insider Activity

In other news, insider Heath B. Monesmith sold 49,040 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, August 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $301.02, for a total transaction of $14,762,020.80. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 71,262 shares in the company, valued at $21,451,287.24. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. In other news, insider Heath B. Monesmith sold 49,040 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, August 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $301.02, for a total transaction of $14,762,020.80. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 71,262 shares in the company, valued at $21,451,287.24. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, insider Taras G. Jr. Szmagala sold 335 shares of the firm’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 completion of the sale, the insider now owns 9,900 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,858,328. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 52,511 shares of company stock worth $15,809,326. Corporate insiders own 0.53% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Eaton

Several institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of ETN. Gryphon Financial Partners LLC boosted its stake in Eaton by 81.3% in the fourth quarter. Gryphon Financial Partners LLC now owns 2,348 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $565,000 after acquiring an additional 1,053 shares in the last quarter. Johnson Investment Counsel Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Eaton by 2.3% during the fourth quarter. Johnson Investment Counsel Inc. now owns 7,622 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $1,836,000 after purchasing an additional 172 shares during the last quarter. Checchi Capital Advisers LLC raised its holdings in shares of Eaton by 4.1% during the fourth quarter. Checchi Capital Advisers LLC now owns 5,117 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $1,232,000 after purchasing an additional 203 shares during the last quarter. Avantax Advisory Services Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Eaton by 23.4% during the fourth quarter. Avantax Advisory Services Inc. now owns 13,879 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $3,342,000 after purchasing an additional 2,631 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Advisor OS LLC purchased a new position in shares of Eaton during the fourth quarter worth $233,000. 82.97% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Eaton Stock Performance

Eaton stock opened at $305.80 on Tuesday. The company has a current ratio of 1.56, a quick ratio of 1.07 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.44. Eaton has a 1-year low of $191.82 and a 1-year high of $345.19. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $300.56 and a 200-day moving average of $311.66. The firm has a market cap of $121.74 billion, a P/E ratio of 36.10, a P/E/G ratio of 2.28 and a beta of 1.01.

Eaton (NYSE:ETN) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, August 1st. The industrial products company reported $2.73 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.61 by $0.12. Eaton had a net margin of 15.12% and a return on equity of 21.45%. The business had revenue of $6.35 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.35 billion. Sell-side analysts expect that Eaton will post 10.74 EPS for the current year.

Eaton Dividend Announcement

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

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.