Penobscot Wealth Management Cuts Stock Holdings in Eaton Co. plc (NYSE:ETN)

Penobscot Wealth Management trimmed its holdings in shares of Eaton Co. plc (NYSE:ETN) by 7.4% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 7,102 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 567 shares during the period. Eaton comprises approximately 1.2% of Penobscot Wealth Management’s portfolio, making the stock its 26th largest position. Penobscot Wealth Management’s holdings in Eaton were worth $1,710,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Meeder Asset Management Inc. increased its holdings in Eaton by 3.3% in the 4th quarter. Meeder Asset Management Inc. now owns 1,315 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $317,000 after acquiring an additional 42 shares during the last quarter. Telemus Capital LLC increased its holdings in Eaton by 1.0% in the 4th quarter. Telemus Capital LLC now owns 4,111 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $990,000 after acquiring an additional 42 shares during the last quarter. Amarillo National Bank increased its holdings in Eaton by 3.5% in the 4th quarter. Amarillo National Bank now owns 1,270 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $306,000 after acquiring an additional 43 shares during the last quarter. Monument Capital Management increased its holdings in Eaton by 1.9% in the 4th quarter. Monument Capital Management now owns 2,415 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $582,000 after acquiring an additional 44 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Red Spruce Capital LLC increased its holdings in Eaton by 0.3% in the 4th quarter. Red Spruce Capital LLC now owns 17,522 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $4,220,000 after acquiring an additional 45 shares during the last quarter. 82.97% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. Berenberg Bank upped their target price on shares of Eaton from $200.00 to $345.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, March 6th. Evercore ISI increased their price objective on shares of Eaton from $262.00 to $308.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 20th. The Goldman Sachs Group increased their price objective on shares of Eaton from $287.00 to $328.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, March 15th. UBS Group increased their price objective on shares of Eaton from $255.00 to $305.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, February 2nd. Finally, Barclays raised shares of Eaton from an “underweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and increased their price objective for the stock from $250.00 to $300.00 in a research report on Tuesday, April 2nd. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have issued a hold rating and twelve have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Eaton has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $295.60.

Eaton Trading Down 0.5 %

ETN stock traded down $1.69 during mid-day trading on Thursday, reaching $317.10. The company had a trading volume of 2,416,304 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,952,214. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.43, a current ratio of 1.51 and a quick ratio of 1.02. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $303.89 and a 200 day moving average of $257.51. Eaton Co. plc has a 12 month low of $161.12 and a 12 month high of $331.47. The company has a market capitalization of $126.68 billion, a PE ratio of 39.54, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.59 and a beta of 1.07.

Eaton (NYSE:ETN) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 1st. The industrial products company reported $2.55 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.47 by $0.08. Eaton had a net margin of 13.88% and a return on equity of 20.05%. The firm had revenue of $5.97 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.91 billion. During the same period last year, the firm earned $2.06 earnings per share. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 10.8% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities analysts predict that Eaton Co. plc will post 10.28 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Eaton Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 24th. Shareholders of record on Monday, May 6th will be paid a $0.94 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, May 3rd. This represents a $3.76 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.19%. Eaton’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 46.88%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Eaton

In other Eaton news, insider Ernest W. Marshall, Jr. sold 19,750 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $273.17, for a total value of $5,395,107.50. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 29,712 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $8,116,427.04. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. In related news, insider Ernest W. Marshall, Jr. sold 19,750 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $273.17, for a total transaction of $5,395,107.50. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 29,712 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $8,116,427.04. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, insider Peter Denk sold 1,731 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $288.97, for a total transaction of $500,207.07. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 5,514 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,593,380.58. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 38,969 shares of company stock worth $10,904,774 over the last three months. Corporate insiders own 0.53% of the company’s stock.

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.