Kentucky Retirement Systems Insurance Trust Fund Decreases Stock Holdings in Eaton Co. plc (NYSE:ETN)

Kentucky Retirement Systems Insurance Trust Fund trimmed its holdings in shares of Eaton Co. plc (NYSE:ETN) by 5.3% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 14,225 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 793 shares during the quarter. Kentucky Retirement Systems Insurance Trust Fund’s holdings in Eaton were worth $3,426,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its position in Eaton by 0.5% during the third quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 36,336,041 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $7,749,751,000 after purchasing an additional 176,900 shares in the last quarter. FMR LLC lifted its stake in Eaton by 36.0% in the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 19,921,979 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $4,248,960,000 after buying an additional 5,270,331 shares in the last quarter. Northern Trust Corp boosted its holdings in Eaton by 2.2% in the 3rd 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 during the last quarter. Raymond James & Associates raised its holdings in shares of Eaton by 3.8% during the fourth quarter. Raymond James & Associates now owns 3,739,725 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $900,600,000 after acquiring an additional 138,465 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. lifted its position in shares of Eaton by 1.3% in the fourth quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 2,163,432 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $520,998,000 after acquiring an additional 27,386 shares in the last quarter. 82.97% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

ETN has been the topic of a number of research reports. Argus raised their price objective on Eaton from $290.00 to $350.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, May 2nd. Citigroup boosted their price objective on Eaton from $270.00 to $310.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, February 2nd. Barclays upgraded Eaton from an “underweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and lifted their price target for the stock from $250.00 to $300.00 in a report on Tuesday, April 2nd. Wolfe Research restated an “underperform” rating and set a $312.00 price objective on shares of Eaton in a research report on Monday, April 8th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group lifted their price target on shares of Eaton from $287.00 to $328.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, March 15th. One 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. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $314.27.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Eaton news, insider Peter Denk sold 1,731 shares of Eaton stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $288.97, for a total transaction of $500,207.07. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 5,514 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,593,380.58. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. In other news, insider Heath B. Monesmith sold 13,027 shares of Eaton stock in a transaction dated 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 sale, the insider now owns 69,472 shares in the company, valued at $20,244,140.80. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed 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 shares were sold at an average price of $288.97, for a total value of $500,207.07. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 5,514 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,593,380.58. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 17,174 shares of company stock worth $5,098,000. Corporate insiders own 0.53% of the company’s stock.

Eaton Stock Up 0.0 %

Shares of NYSE ETN traded up $0.06 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $330.24. The company had a trading volume of 1,881,539 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,429,416. The business’s 50-day simple moving average is $316.38 and its 200 day simple moving average is $271.53. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.42, a current ratio of 1.56 and a quick ratio of 1.05. Eaton Co. plc has a 1-year low of $167.33 and a 1-year high of $338.88. The company has a market capitalization of $132.03 billion, a PE ratio of 38.99, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.60 and a beta of 1.06.

Eaton (NYSE:ETN) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, April 30th. The industrial products company reported $2.40 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.28 by $0.12. The business had revenue of $5.94 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.91 billion. Eaton had a return on equity of 20.69% and a net margin of 14.38%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 8.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $1.88 earnings per share. On average, analysts predict that Eaton Co. plc will post 10.51 earnings per share for the current year.

Eaton Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 24th. Stockholders of record on Monday, May 6th will be given a dividend of $0.94 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, May 3rd. This represents a $3.76 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.14%. Eaton’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 44.39%.

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.