Eaton Co. plc (NYSE:ETN) Shares Sold by Argent Capital Management LLC

Argent Capital Management LLC cut its holdings in shares of Eaton Co. plc (NYSE:ETN) by 2.0% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 127,456 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 2,566 shares during the period. Argent Capital Management LLC’s holdings in Eaton were worth $42,299,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC raised its position in shares of Eaton by 253.2% in the third quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 2,273,685 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $753,590,000 after acquiring an additional 1,629,856 shares during the period. International Assets Investment Management LLC grew its stake in Eaton by 27,075.5% during the 3rd quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 1,073,976 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $355,959,000 after acquiring an additional 1,070,024 shares in the last quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC grew its stake in shares of Eaton by 32.8% in the 3rd quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC now owns 2,419,200 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $801,798,000 after buying an additional 597,700 shares during the period. Electron Capital Partners LLC grew its stake in shares of Eaton by 8,348.9% in the 2nd quarter. Electron Capital Partners LLC now owns 446,524 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $140,008,000 after buying an additional 441,239 shares during the period. Finally, Vaughan Nelson Investment Management L.P. acquired a new position in shares of Eaton in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $137,794,000. 82.97% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director Gregory R. Page sold 4,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, November 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $335.30, for a total transaction of $1,341,200.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 51,422 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $17,241,796.60. This represents a 7.22 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, insider Craig Arnold sold 61,569 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, November 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $360.97, for a total value of $22,224,561.93. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 506,360 shares in the company, valued at approximately $182,780,769.20. This trade represents a 10.84 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 76,981 shares of company stock worth $27,660,117 in the last 90 days. Corporate insiders own 0.33% of the company’s stock.

Eaton Stock Performance

ETN stock opened at $342.35 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.45, a quick ratio of 1.00 and a current ratio of 1.53. The stock has a market cap of $135.30 billion, a P/E ratio of 36.42, a P/E/G ratio of 2.27 and a beta of 1.06. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $355.38 and a 200 day simple moving average of $329.33. Eaton Co. plc has a 52 week low of $236.04 and a 52 week high of $379.99.

Eaton (NYSE:ETN) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, October 31st. The industrial products company reported $2.84 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.80 by $0.04. Eaton had a net margin of 15.32% and a return on equity of 21.97%. The company had revenue of $6.35 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.37 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $2.47 earnings per share. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 7.9% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts anticipate that Eaton Co. plc will post 10.8 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Eaton Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, November 22nd. Investors of record on Monday, November 4th were given a dividend of $0.94 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, November 4th. This represents a $3.76 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.10%. Eaton’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 40.00%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

ETN has been the topic of a number of research reports. Bank of America increased their target price on shares of Eaton from $350.00 to $410.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, November 13th. Jefferies Financial Group boosted their price target on shares of Eaton from $400.00 to $440.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, December 6th. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price target on shares of Eaton from $365.00 to $350.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, January 7th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their price objective on shares of Eaton from $350.00 to $348.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday. Finally, Evercore ISI lowered shares of Eaton from an “outperform” rating to an “inline” rating and boosted their price target for the stock from $333.00 to $389.00 in a research note on Wednesday, November 13th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and thirteen have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $368.89.

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.