Aviance Capital Partners LLC Sells 200 Shares of Eaton Co. plc (NYSE:ETN)

Aviance Capital Partners LLC reduced its stake in shares of Eaton Co. plc (NYSE:ETN) by 8.9% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 2,042 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 200 shares during the quarter. Aviance Capital Partners LLC’s holdings in Eaton were worth $492,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Meeder Asset Management Inc. grew its position in Eaton by 3.3% during the fourth quarter. Meeder Asset Management Inc. now owns 1,315 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $317,000 after buying an additional 42 shares during the period. 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 worth $990,000 after acquiring an additional 42 shares in the last quarter. Amarillo National Bank lifted its holdings in Eaton by 3.5% during the fourth quarter. Amarillo National Bank now owns 1,270 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $306,000 after purchasing an additional 43 shares in the last quarter. Monument Capital Management boosted 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 worth $582,000 after buying an additional 44 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Red Spruce Capital LLC raised its position in shares of Eaton by 0.3% in the fourth quarter. Red Spruce Capital LLC now owns 17,522 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $4,220,000 after buying an additional 45 shares during the last quarter. 82.97% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Eaton Stock Performance

NYSE ETN traded up $0.06 during trading hours on Tuesday, hitting $327.30. 1,792,924 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,025,208. Eaton Co. plc has a 12-month low of $165.24 and a 12-month high of $333.05. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $310.41 and a 200 day moving average of $264.55. The company has a market cap of $130.85 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 38.64, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.54 and a beta of 1.06. The company has a quick ratio of 1.05, a current ratio of 1.56 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.42.

Eaton (NYSE:ETN) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, April 30th. The industrial products company reported $2.40 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.28 by $0.12. Eaton had a return on equity of 20.69% and a net margin of 14.38%. The business had revenue of $5.94 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.91 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $1.88 EPS. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 8.4% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Eaton Co. plc will post 10.45 earnings per share for the current year.

Eaton Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 24th. Stockholders of record on Monday, May 6th will be paid a dividend of $0.94 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, May 3rd. This represents a $3.76 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.15%. Eaton’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 44.39%.

Insider Activity

In other news, insider Ernest W. Marshall, Jr. sold 19,750 shares of Eaton stock in a transaction that occurred 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 sale, the insider now directly owns 29,712 shares in the company, valued at approximately $8,116,427.04. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. In other Eaton news, insider Peter Denk sold 1,731 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $288.97, for a total transaction of $500,207.07. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 5,514 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,593,380.58. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, insider Ernest W. Marshall, Jr. sold 19,750 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated 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 sale, the insider now directly owns 29,712 shares in the company, valued at approximately $8,116,427.04. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 38,969 shares of company stock worth $10,904,774 in the last 90 days. 0.33% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts recently issued reports on ETN shares. Berenberg Bank lifted their target price on Eaton from $200.00 to $345.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, March 6th. Royal Bank of Canada upgraded shares of Eaton from a “sector perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and upped their price objective for the company from $286.00 to $371.00 in a research note on Friday, April 5th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their target price on Eaton from $279.00 to $325.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 1st. Bank of America lifted their price target on Eaton from $320.00 to $330.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, March 18th. Finally, Mizuho reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $355.00 price objective (up from $340.00) on shares of Eaton in a report on Wednesday, May 1st. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have given a hold rating and twelve have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Eaton presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $314.27.

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.