Eaton Co. plc (NYSE:ETN) Shares Purchased by GDS Wealth Management

GDS Wealth Management boosted its stake in Eaton Co. plc (NYSE:ETN) by 0.9% during the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The fund owned 4,535 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after purchasing an additional 40 shares during the quarter. GDS Wealth Management’s holdings in Eaton were worth $1,505,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Horizon Bancorp Inc. IN grew its stake in Eaton by 321.7% in the 4th quarter. Horizon Bancorp Inc. IN now owns 97 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $32,000 after acquiring an additional 74 shares during the period. Morse Asset Management Inc acquired a new stake in Eaton in the 3rd quarter valued at $33,000. West Financial Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Eaton in the 3rd quarter valued at $35,000. DT Investment Partners LLC acquired a new stake in Eaton during the 3rd quarter worth $37,000. Finally, RPg Family Wealth Advisory LLC acquired a new stake in Eaton during the 3rd quarter worth $44,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 82.97% of the company’s stock.

Eaton Stock Down 3.3 %

Shares of ETN opened at $315.74 on Tuesday. The firm has a market cap of $124.78 billion, a P/E ratio of 33.24, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.27 and a beta of 1.06. Eaton Co. plc has a 12-month low of $255.65 and a 12-month high of $379.99. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $349.23 and its 200 day moving average price is $331.21. The company has a current ratio of 1.50, a quick ratio of 0.96 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.46.

Eaton (NYSE:ETN) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Friday, January 31st. The industrial products company reported $2.83 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates 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 last year, the firm earned $2.55 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that Eaton Co. plc will post 12 earnings per share for the current year.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several brokerages have issued reports on ETN. Barclays lifted their target price on shares of Eaton from $320.00 to $353.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Thursday, December 5th. Melius Research reaffirmed a “hold” rating and set a $373.00 target price on shares of Eaton in a research note on Tuesday, January 28th. Royal Bank of Canada lowered their target price on shares of Eaton from $407.00 to $405.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday. Bank of America lifted their target price on shares of Eaton from $350.00 to $410.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, November 13th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price target on Eaton from $350.00 to $348.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, January 15th. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and thirteen have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Eaton presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $369.20.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, insider Craig Arnold sold 61,569 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, November 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $360.97, for a total transaction of $22,224,561.93. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 506,360 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $182,780,769.20. The trade was a 10.84 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, Director Gregory R. Page sold 10,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, December 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $355.98, for a total value of $3,559,800.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 43,203 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $15,379,403.94. This represents a 18.80 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 72,981 shares of company stock worth $26,318,917 over the last three months. Company insiders own 0.53% of the company’s stock.

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.