Eaton Co. plc (NYSE:ETN) Stock Position Lowered by Ashburton Jersey Ltd

Ashburton Jersey Ltd decreased its position in Eaton Co. plc (NYSE:ETN) by 62.6% in the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm owned 31,160 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 52,262 shares during the period. Eaton accounts for 4.6% of Ashburton Jersey Ltd’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 5th largest holding. Ashburton Jersey Ltd’s holdings in Eaton were worth $10,341,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in Eaton in the fourth quarter worth about $1,495,582,000. Proficio Capital Partners LLC increased its holdings in Eaton by 42,255.3% during the fourth quarter. Proficio Capital Partners LLC now owns 732,323 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $243,036,000 after buying an additional 730,594 shares during the period. Bank Julius Baer & Co. Ltd Zurich lifted its holdings in Eaton by 390.7% during the fourth quarter. Bank Julius Baer & Co. Ltd Zurich now owns 539,673 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $193,421,000 after buying an additional 429,701 shares during the period. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. increased its holdings in shares of Eaton by 3,508.4% in the 4th quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 401,728 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $133,321,000 after acquiring an additional 390,595 shares during the period. Finally, Franklin Resources Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Eaton by 13.3% during the 4th quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 2,744,691 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $910,881,000 after purchasing an additional 323,065 shares during the last quarter. 82.97% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

ETN has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. StockNews.com cut shares of Eaton from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, March 21st. Melius Research reiterated a “hold” rating and set a $373.00 price objective on shares of Eaton in a report on Tuesday, January 28th. Citigroup decreased their price target on Eaton from $440.00 to $410.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, January 13th. Melius downgraded shares of Eaton from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and set a $373.00 price objective on the stock. in a report on Tuesday, January 28th. Finally, Evercore ISI decreased their price objective on shares of Eaton from $382.00 to $326.00 and set an “in-line” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, February 19th. Eight equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twelve have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Eaton presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $356.68.

Eaton Stock Down 5.6 %

NYSE:ETN opened at $246.36 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.46, a current ratio of 1.50 and a quick ratio of 0.96. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $296.43 and its 200-day moving average price is $330.13. Eaton Co. plc has a 1-year low of $236.58 and a 1-year high of $379.99. The firm has a market capitalization of $96.52 billion, a P/E ratio of 25.93, a PEG ratio of 2.64 and a beta of 1.09.

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

Eaton Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 28th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 10th were issued a $1.04 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Monday, March 10th. This is an increase from Eaton’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.94. This represents a $4.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.69%. Eaton’s payout ratio is presently 43.79%.

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.