GAMMA Investing LLC Purchases Shares of 5,971 Eaton Co. plc (NYSE:ETN)

GAMMA Investing LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Eaton Co. plc (NYSE:ETN) in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund acquired 5,971 shares of the industrial products company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,469,000.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Eaton by 0.5% during the third quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 36,336,041 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $7,749,751,000 after acquiring an additional 176,900 shares in the last quarter. FMR LLC grew its holdings in Eaton by 36.0% during the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 19,921,979 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $4,248,960,000 after buying an additional 5,270,331 shares in the last quarter. Northern Trust Corp grew its holdings in Eaton by 2.2% during the third quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 5,009,435 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $1,068,412,000 after buying an additional 109,775 shares in the last quarter. Raymond James & Associates grew its holdings in Eaton by 3.8% during the fourth quarter. Raymond James & Associates now owns 3,739,725 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $900,600,000 after buying an additional 138,465 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Deutsche Bank AG grew its holdings in Eaton by 97.5% during the third quarter. Deutsche Bank AG now owns 1,860,312 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $396,767,000 after buying an additional 918,422 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 82.97% of the company’s stock.

Eaton Price Performance

ETN traded up $4.81 during trading on Tuesday, reaching $312.90. 2,781,131 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,925,753. The company’s 50-day moving average is $301.39 and its two-hundred day moving average is $255.94. The company has a market cap of $125.00 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 38.43, a P/E/G ratio of 2.51 and a beta of 1.07. The company has a quick ratio of 1.02, a current ratio of 1.51 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.43. Eaton Co. plc has a 12-month low of $161.12 and a 12-month high of $331.47.

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

Eaton Announces Dividend

The firm 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. This represents a $3.76 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.20%. Eaton’s dividend payout ratio is currently 46.88%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Eaton news, insider Olivier Leonetti sold 4,461 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $272.00, for a total value of $1,213,392.00. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 630 shares in the company, valued at approximately $171,360. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. In related news, insider Olivier Leonetti sold 4,461 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $272.00, for a total transaction of $1,213,392.00. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 630 shares in the company, valued at approximately $171,360. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, insider Peter Denk sold 1,731 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $288.97, for a total value of $500,207.07. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 5,514 shares in the company, valued at $1,593,380.58. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 38,969 shares of company stock worth $10,904,774 in the last ninety days. 0.33% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

ETN has been the subject of a number of recent analyst reports. Barclays upgraded Eaton from an “underweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and upped their price objective for the company from $250.00 to $300.00 in a research note on Tuesday, April 2nd. Bank of America upped their price objective on Eaton from $320.00 to $330.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, March 18th. The Goldman Sachs Group upped their price objective on Eaton from $287.00 to $328.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, March 15th. Evercore ISI upped their price objective on Eaton from $262.00 to $308.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 20th. Finally, Wolfe Research restated an “underperform” rating and issued a $312.00 price objective on shares of Eaton in a research note on Monday, April 8th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have assigned a hold rating and twelve have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $295.60.

Eaton Company 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.