Maple Capital Management Inc. Takes Position in Eaton Co. plc (NYSE:ETN)

Maple Capital Management Inc. purchased a new stake in Eaton Co. plc (NYSE:ETN) during the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The institutional investor purchased 611 shares of the industrial products company’s stock, valued at approximately $203,000.

Other large investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Groupama Asset Managment raised its holdings in shares of Eaton by 83.2% in the 3rd quarter. Groupama Asset Managment now owns 9,463 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $31,000 after buying an additional 4,298 shares during the period. Horizon Bancorp Inc. IN raised its holdings in shares of 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 buying an additional 74 shares during the period. Morse Asset Management Inc purchased a new stake in shares of Eaton in the 3rd quarter valued at $33,000. Activest Wealth Management raised its holdings in shares of 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 buying an additional 87 shares during the period. Finally, Hager Investment Management Services LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Eaton in the 4th quarter valued at $38,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 82.97% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity at Eaton

In other Eaton news, Director Gregory R. Page sold 10,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, December 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $355.98, for a total transaction of $3,559,800.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 43,203 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $15,379,403.94. This trade represents a 18.80 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Insiders own 0.33% of the company’s stock.

Eaton Stock Up 1.0 %

Shares of NYSE ETN opened at $293.21 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $115.88 billion, a PE ratio of 30.86, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.64 and a beta of 1.05. The company has a quick ratio of 0.96, a current ratio of 1.50 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.46. Eaton Co. plc has a 52-week low of $255.65 and a 52-week high of $379.99. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $326.90 and a 200 day moving average price of $332.29.

Eaton (NYSE:ETN) last announced its earnings results on Friday, January 31st. The industrial products company reported $2.83 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.82 by $0.01. Eaton had a return on equity of 22.62% and a net margin of 15.25%. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $2.55 earnings per share. Equities research analysts forecast that Eaton Co. plc will post 12.02 earnings per share for the current year.

Eaton Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 28th. Investors of record on Monday, March 10th will be given a $1.04 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 10th. This is a boost from Eaton’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.94. This represents a $4.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.42%. Eaton’s dividend payout ratio is 39.58%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts recently issued reports on the company. Sanford C. Bernstein assumed coverage on Eaton in a report on Tuesday, November 5th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $382.00 price objective on the stock. Barclays upped their price target on Eaton from $320.00 to $353.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Thursday, December 5th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut 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. Melius downgraded Eaton from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and set a $373.00 price target on the stock. in a report on Tuesday, January 28th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company restated an “equal weight” rating on shares of Eaton in a report on Thursday, February 13th. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and thirteen have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $366.05.

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.