LGT Fund Management Co Ltd. Grows Stock Holdings in Eaton Co. plc (NYSE:ETN)

LGT Fund Management Co Ltd. boosted its holdings in shares of Eaton Co. plc (NYSE:ETN) by 82.0% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 4,003 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after purchasing an additional 1,803 shares during the quarter. LGT Fund Management Co Ltd.’s holdings in Eaton were worth $1,328,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

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

Eaton Stock Down 5.3 %

Shares of Eaton stock opened at $277.71 on Tuesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.46, a current ratio of 1.50 and a quick ratio of 0.96. Eaton Co. plc has a 1 year low of $255.65 and a 1 year high of $379.99. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $325.70 and its two-hundred day moving average is $332.62. The stock has a market cap of $109.75 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 29.23, a PEG ratio of 2.64 and a beta of 1.05.

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

Eaton Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 28th. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 10th will be given a $1.04 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 10th. This represents a $4.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.50%. This is an increase from Eaton’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.94. Eaton’s payout ratio is presently 43.79%.

Insider Transactions at Eaton

In other news, Director Gregory R. Page sold 10,000 shares of Eaton stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, December 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $355.98, for a total value of $3,559,800.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 43,203 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $15,379,403.94. The trade was a 18.80 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Insiders own 0.53% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several brokerages have recently weighed in on ETN. UBS Group began coverage on shares of Eaton in a research note on Wednesday, November 13th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $431.00 target price on the stock. Jefferies Financial Group increased their target price on shares of Eaton from $400.00 to $440.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, December 6th. Bank of America increased their target price on shares of Eaton from $350.00 to $410.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, November 13th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their target price on shares of Eaton from $350.00 to $348.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, January 15th. Finally, Barclays reduced their price target on shares of Eaton from $353.00 to $325.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and thirteen have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $364.65.

Eaton Company 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.