Washington Trust Advisors Inc. Increases Holdings in Eaton Co. plc (NYSE:ETN)

Washington Trust Advisors Inc. lifted its position in shares of Eaton Co. plc (NYSE:ETN) by 6.3% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 5,048 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after acquiring an additional 298 shares during the quarter. Washington Trust Advisors Inc.’s holdings in Eaton were worth $1,675,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Noble Wealth Management PBC acquired a new position in shares of Eaton during the 4th quarter worth approximately $30,000. Groupama Asset Managment raised its position in shares of Eaton by 83.2% during the 3rd quarter. Groupama Asset Managment now owns 9,463 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $31,000 after purchasing an additional 4,298 shares during the last quarter. Horizon Bancorp Inc. IN raised its position in shares of Eaton by 321.7% during the 4th quarter. Horizon Bancorp Inc. IN now owns 97 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $32,000 after purchasing an additional 74 shares during the last quarter. Morse Asset Management Inc acquired a new position in shares of Eaton during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $33,000. Finally, Activest Wealth Management raised its holdings in Eaton by 621.4% in the 4th quarter. Activest Wealth Management now owns 101 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $34,000 after acquiring an additional 87 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 82.97% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at Eaton

In other news, Director Gregory R. Page sold 10,000 shares of the 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 completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 43,203 shares in the company, valued at $15,379,403.94. This trade represents a 18.80 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. 0.53% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Eaton Stock Performance

Shares of ETN stock opened at $287.85 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.46, a quick ratio of 0.96 and a current ratio of 1.50. Eaton Co. plc has a one year low of $255.65 and a one year high of $379.99. The company’s 50-day simple moving average is $323.38 and its 200-day simple moving average is $332.18. The stock has a market capitalization of $112.84 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 30.30, a PEG ratio of 2.64 and a beta of 1.09.

Eaton (NYSE:ETN) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Friday, January 31st. The industrial products company reported $2.83 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 earned $2.55 EPS. Equities analysts anticipate that Eaton Co. plc will post 12.02 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Eaton Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 28th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 10th will be paid a $1.04 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 10th. This represents a $4.16 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.45%. This is a positive change from Eaton’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.94. Eaton’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 43.79%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

ETN has been the subject of several analyst reports. Wells Fargo & Company cut their price target on Eaton from $335.00 to $305.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday. Citigroup dropped their price objective on Eaton from $440.00 to $410.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Monday, January 13th. Jefferies Financial Group upped their price objective on Eaton from $400.00 to $440.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, December 6th. Melius Research restated a “hold” rating and set a $373.00 price objective on shares of Eaton in a report on Tuesday, January 28th. Finally, Barclays dropped their price objective on Eaton from $353.00 to $325.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report 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 stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $363.15.

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.