ProShare Advisors LLC Grows Position in Eaton Co. plc (NYSE:ETN)

ProShare Advisors LLC boosted its stake in shares of Eaton Co. plc (NYSE:ETN) by 10.9% in the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 60,658 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after acquiring an additional 5,970 shares during the period. ProShare Advisors LLC’s holdings in Eaton were worth $19,019,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the company. LifeSteps Financial Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Eaton in the first quarter worth about $25,000. Breakwater Investment Management increased its stake in Eaton by 1,560.0% in the 2nd quarter. Breakwater Investment Management now owns 83 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $26,000 after acquiring an additional 78 shares during the last quarter. Atwood & Palmer Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Eaton by 142.9% during the 1st quarter. Atwood & Palmer Inc. now owns 85 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $27,000 after acquiring an additional 50 shares in the last quarter. Clear Investment Research LLC bought a new position in shares of Eaton during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $29,000. Finally, Proffitt & Goodson Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Eaton in the second quarter valued at $29,000. 82.97% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Eaton Price Performance

Shares of ETN stock opened at $329.69 on Tuesday. The company’s 50-day simple moving average is $299.99 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $312.91. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.44, a current ratio of 1.56 and a quick ratio of 1.07. Eaton Co. plc has a one year low of $191.82 and a one year high of $345.19. The company has a market capitalization of $131.81 billion, a P/E ratio of 38.92, a P/E/G ratio of 2.28 and a beta of 1.01.

Eaton (NYSE:ETN) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, August 1st. The industrial products company reported $2.73 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.61 by $0.12. Eaton had a return on equity of 21.45% and a net margin of 15.12%. The company had revenue of $6.35 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.35 billion. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Eaton Co. plc will post 10.74 EPS for the current year.

Eaton Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 23rd. Shareholders of record on Monday, August 5th were given a dividend of $0.94 per share. This represents a $3.76 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.14%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, August 5th. Eaton’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 44.39%.

Insider Activity

In other news, insider Taras G. Jr. Szmagala sold 335 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, August 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $288.72, for a total transaction of $96,721.20. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 9,900 shares in the company, valued at $2,858,328. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. 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 sale, the insider now owns 9,900 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,858,328. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, insider Heath B. Monesmith sold 49,040 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, August 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $301.02, for a total transaction of $14,762,020.80. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 71,262 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $21,451,287.24. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders sold 52,511 shares of company stock worth $15,809,326. 0.53% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms have commented on ETN. Jefferies Financial Group increased their price objective on shares of Eaton from $370.00 to $385.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, July 11th. Royal Bank of Canada dropped their price target on Eaton from $376.00 to $371.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, August 2nd. Barclays upped their price objective on Eaton from $318.00 to $319.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Friday, August 2nd. Citigroup began coverage on Eaton in a report on Monday, September 16th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $348.00 target price for the company. Finally, Morgan Stanley began coverage on Eaton in a report on Friday, September 6th. They set an “overweight” rating and a $370.00 price target on the stock. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fourteen have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $337.41.

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.