Naples Money Management LLC Buys New Position in Eaton Co. plc (NYSE:ETN)

Naples Money Management LLC bought a new stake in Eaton Co. plc (NYSE:ETN) during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm bought 11,198 shares of the industrial products company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,697,000. Eaton comprises about 2.5% of Naples Money Management LLC’s holdings, making the stock its 11th biggest holding.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of ETN. FMR LLC increased its position in shares of Eaton by 36.0% during the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 19,921,979 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $4,248,960,000 after purchasing an additional 5,270,331 shares during the last quarter. Norges Bank acquired a new position in shares of Eaton during the 4th quarter worth approximately $798,119,000. Moneta Group Investment Advisors LLC increased its position in shares of Eaton by 122,471.4% during the 4th quarter. Moneta Group Investment Advisors LLC now owns 2,619,350 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $411,107,000 after purchasing an additional 2,617,213 shares during the last quarter. Morgan Stanley increased its position in shares of Eaton by 26.2% during the 4th quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 12,542,343 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $1,968,521,000 after purchasing an additional 2,602,246 shares during the last quarter. Finally, J.P. Morgan Private Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Eaton during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $340,500,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 82.97% of the company’s stock.

Insider Transactions at Eaton

In other news, insider Heath B. Monesmith sold 13,027 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, March 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $291.40, for a total transaction of $3,796,067.80. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 69,472 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $20,244,140.80. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. In other Eaton news, insider Heath B. Monesmith sold 13,027 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $291.40, for a total value of $3,796,067.80. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 69,472 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $20,244,140.80. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, insider Peter Denk sold 1,731 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $288.97, for a total value of $500,207.07. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 5,514 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,593,380.58. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders sold 38,969 shares of company stock valued at $10,904,774. Corporate insiders own 0.53% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

ETN has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. Mizuho boosted their price target on Eaton from $300.00 to $340.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, March 20th. Bank of America lifted their target price on Eaton from $320.00 to $330.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, March 18th. Evercore ISI lifted their target price on Eaton from $262.00 to $308.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 20th. Berenberg Bank lifted their target price on Eaton from $200.00 to $345.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 6th. Finally, Barclays upgraded Eaton from an “underweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and lifted their target price for the stock from $250.00 to $300.00 in a research note on Tuesday, April 2nd. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have given a hold rating and twelve have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $295.60.

Eaton Price Performance

NYSE ETN traded down $5.72 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $303.22. The company had a trading volume of 3,084,235 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,908,520. The company has a market capitalization of $121.14 billion, a PE ratio of 37.78, a P/E/G ratio of 2.57 and a beta of 1.07. The company has a current ratio of 1.51, a quick ratio of 1.02 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.43. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $300.20 and a 200-day moving average price of $253.91. Eaton Co. plc has a twelve month low of $161.12 and a twelve month high of $331.47.

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

Eaton Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 29th. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 11th were issued a dividend of $0.94 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, March 8th. This represents a $3.76 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.24%. This is a boost from Eaton’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.86. Eaton’s payout ratio is 46.88%.

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.