Eaton Co. plc (NYSE:ETN) Shares Sold by Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA

Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA cut its stake in Eaton Co. plc (NYSE:ETN) by 12.6% in the second quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 10,322,650 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 1,488,708 shares during the period. Eaton accounts for about 1.0% of Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA’s portfolio, making the stock its 14th largest position. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA owned about 2.58% of Eaton worth $3,236,667,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. LifeSteps Financial Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Eaton in the 1st quarter valued at $25,000. Breakwater Investment Management grew its stake in Eaton by 1,560.0% during the 2nd quarter. Breakwater Investment Management now owns 83 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $26,000 after purchasing an additional 78 shares during the last quarter. Atwood & Palmer Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Eaton by 142.9% in the first quarter. Atwood & Palmer Inc. now owns 85 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $27,000 after purchasing an additional 50 shares during the period. Proffitt & Goodson Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Eaton in the second quarter worth about $29,000. Finally, LGT Financial Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Eaton in the second quarter valued at approximately $33,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 82.97% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms have issued reports on ETN. Raymond James reduced their price target on shares of Eaton from $375.00 to $365.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, September 9th. Royal Bank of Canada lowered their price target on shares of Eaton from $376.00 to $371.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, August 2nd. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price objective on Eaton from $320.00 to $315.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Friday, August 2nd. Evercore ISI lowered their target price on Eaton from $357.00 to $333.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, August 19th. Finally, Morgan Stanley initiated coverage on shares of Eaton in a report on Friday, September 6th. They set an “overweight” rating and a $370.00 target price for the company. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fourteen have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Eaton has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $335.18.

Eaton Trading Up 0.8 %

ETN opened at $305.80 on Monday. 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 company’s 50 day simple moving average is $300.56 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $311.83. The firm has a market capitalization of $122.26 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 36.10, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.28 and a beta of 1.01. Eaton Co. plc has a 1-year low of $191.82 and a 1-year high of $345.19.

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

Eaton Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 23rd. Shareholders of record on Monday, August 5th were issued a $0.94 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, August 5th. This represents a $3.76 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.23%. Eaton’s payout ratio is 44.39%.

Insider Transactions at Eaton

In other Eaton news, Director Dorothy C. Thompson acquired 2,205 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, September 3rd. The stock was bought at an average cost of $300.30 per share, for a total transaction of $662,161.50. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 2,205 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $662,161.50. The acquisition was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. In related news, insider Taras G. Jr. Szmagala sold 335 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $288.72, for a total transaction of $96,721.20. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 9,900 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,858,328. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, Director Dorothy C. Thompson acquired 2,205 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, September 3rd. The stock was acquired at an average price of $300.30 per share, with a total value of $662,161.50. Following the acquisition, the director now directly owns 2,205 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $662,161.50. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Insiders sold 52,511 shares of company stock worth $15,809,326 in the last 90 days. 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.