Eaton Co. plc (NYSE:ETN) Shares Sold by Argent Trust Co

Argent Trust Co lowered its position in shares of Eaton Co. plc (NYSE:ETN) by 1.2% during the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 18,048 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 222 shares during the quarter. Argent Trust Co’s holdings in Eaton were worth $5,659,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of ETN. Legacy Capital Group California Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Eaton by 1.2% during the 2nd quarter. Legacy Capital Group California Inc. now owns 2,776 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $870,000 after acquiring an additional 32 shares in the last quarter. Well Done LLC boosted its stake in shares of Eaton by 1.3% during the 2nd quarter. Well Done LLC now owns 2,551 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $800,000 after acquiring an additional 33 shares in the last quarter. Verdence Capital Advisors LLC boosted its stake in shares of Eaton by 1.7% during the 1st quarter. Verdence Capital Advisors LLC now owns 2,059 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $644,000 after acquiring an additional 34 shares in the last quarter. J.W. Cole Advisors Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Eaton by 1.7% during the 2nd quarter. J.W. Cole Advisors Inc. now owns 2,053 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $644,000 after acquiring an additional 35 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Fragasso Group Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Eaton by 3.6% during the 1st quarter. Fragasso Group Inc. now owns 1,032 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $323,000 after acquiring an additional 36 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 82.97% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts have recently weighed in on the company. Raymond James reduced their price objective on Eaton from $375.00 to $365.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, September 9th. Jefferies Financial Group increased their target price on Eaton from $370.00 to $385.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, July 11th. Citigroup started coverage on Eaton in a report on Monday. They issued a “buy” rating and a $348.00 target price for the company. Wolfe Research upgraded Eaton from an “underperform” rating to a “peer perform” rating in a report on Friday, September 6th. Finally, Barclays increased their target price on Eaton from $318.00 to $319.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Friday, August 2nd. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fourteen have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $337.41.

Insider Buying and Selling at Eaton

In other Eaton news, insider Michael Yelton sold 3,136 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, August 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $303.12, for a total transaction of $950,584.32. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 3,914 shares in the company, valued at $1,186,411.68. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. In other Eaton news, Director Karenann K. Terrell purchased 500 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, August 21st. The shares were bought at an average cost of $298.97 per share, with a total value of $149,485.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 500 shares in the company, valued at approximately $149,485. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, insider Michael Yelton sold 3,136 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, August 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $303.12, for a total value of $950,584.32. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 3,914 shares in the company, valued at $1,186,411.68. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 52,511 shares of company stock worth $15,809,326 over the last three months. Corporate insiders own 0.53% of the company’s stock.

Eaton Price Performance

NYSE ETN opened at $311.70 on Wednesday. Eaton Co. plc has a fifty-two week low of $191.82 and a fifty-two week high of $345.19. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $300.17 and its two-hundred day moving average is $312.08. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.44, a current ratio of 1.56 and a quick ratio of 1.07. The firm has a market cap of $124.62 billion, a P/E ratio of 36.80, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.28 and a beta of 1.01.

Eaton (NYSE:ETN) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, August 1st. The industrial products company reported $2.73 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.61 by $0.12. Eaton had a return on equity of 21.45% and a net margin of 15.12%. The company had revenue of $6.35 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.35 billion. On average, analysts anticipate that Eaton Co. plc will post 10.74 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Eaton Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 23rd. Shareholders of record on Monday, August 5th were issued a dividend of $0.94 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, August 5th. This represents a $3.76 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.21%. Eaton’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 44.39%.

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.