Eaton (NYSE:ETN) Shares Up 0.9% – Should You Buy?

Eaton Co. plc (NYSE:ETN)’s share price was up 0.9% on Wednesday . The stock traded as high as $378.47 and last traded at $377.25. Approximately 310,278 shares were traded during trading, a decline of 85% from the average daily volume of 2,087,479 shares. The stock had previously closed at $373.75.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

ETN has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. Barclays increased their price target on Eaton from $320.00 to $353.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Thursday. Bank of America upped their target price on shares of Eaton from $350.00 to $410.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, November 13th. Raymond James reduced their price objective on Eaton from $375.00 to $365.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, September 9th. Citigroup began coverage on Eaton in a research note on Monday, September 16th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $348.00 target price for the company. Finally, Wolfe Research upgraded Eaton from an “underperform” rating to a “peer perform” rating in a report on Friday, September 6th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and thirteen have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $362.72.

Eaton Stock Down 1.7 %

The company has a quick ratio of 1.00, a current ratio of 1.53 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.45. The company has a market capitalization of $146.64 billion, a P/E ratio of 39.47, a P/E/G ratio of 2.83 and a beta of 1.03. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $351.88 and a 200-day simple moving average of $325.70.

Eaton (NYSE:ETN) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, October 31st. The industrial products company reported $2.84 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.80 by $0.04. The firm had revenue of $6.35 billion for 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%. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 7.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the company posted $2.47 EPS. On average, equities research analysts expect that Eaton Co. plc will post 10.8 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Eaton Dividend Announcement

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

Insider Buying and Selling at Eaton

In other Eaton news, insider Craig Arnold sold 61,569 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, November 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $360.97, for a total transaction of $22,224,561.93. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 506,360 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $182,780,769.20. The trade was a 10.84 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, Director Gregory R. Page sold 4,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, November 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $335.30, for a total transaction of $1,341,200.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 51,422 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $17,241,796.60. This represents a 7.22 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 66,981 shares of company stock valued at $24,100,317 in the last 90 days. 0.53% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC raised its stake in shares of Eaton by 253.2% during the 3rd quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 2,273,685 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $753,590,000 after purchasing an additional 1,629,856 shares in the last quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC raised its position in Eaton by 27,075.5% during the third quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 1,073,976 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $355,959,000 after acquiring an additional 1,070,024 shares in the last quarter. Swedbank AB acquired a new stake in Eaton in the second quarter valued at $225,974,000. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. grew its position in shares of Eaton by 1,604.4% in the 2nd quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 673,579 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $211,201,000 after acquiring an additional 634,059 shares during the period. Finally, Janus Henderson Group PLC raised its holdings in shares of Eaton by 32.8% in the 3rd quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC now owns 2,419,200 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $801,798,000 after purchasing an additional 597,700 shares during the period. 82.97% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.