Providence Capital Advisors LLC Reduces Stock Holdings in Eaton Co. plc (NYSE:ETN)

Providence Capital Advisors LLC lessened its stake in shares of Eaton Co. plc (NYSE:ETN) by 21.9% in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 18,968 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 5,306 shares during the quarter. Eaton makes up approximately 1.3% of Providence Capital Advisors LLC’s holdings, making the stock its 27th largest holding. Providence Capital Advisors LLC’s holdings in Eaton were worth $5,948,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in ETN. Norden Group LLC purchased a new stake in Eaton in the 1st quarter valued at about $2,176,000. Weiss Asset Management LP acquired a new position in shares of Eaton in the 4th quarter valued at about $1,001,000. Griffin Asset Management Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Eaton in the 1st quarter valued at about $813,000. Stifel Financial Corp lifted its stake in shares of Eaton by 1.3% in the 4th quarter. Stifel Financial Corp now owns 1,480,444 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $356,535,000 after purchasing an additional 19,529 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Focus Financial Network Inc. ADV acquired a new position in shares of Eaton in the 4th quarter valued at about $554,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 82.97% of the company’s stock.

Eaton Trading Down 0.3 %

Shares of ETN stock opened at $329.69 on Tuesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.44, a quick ratio of 1.07 and a current ratio of 1.56. Eaton Co. plc has a 1 year low of $191.82 and a 1 year high of $345.19. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $299.99 and a two-hundred day moving average of $312.91. The firm has a market capitalization of $131.81 billion, a PE ratio of 38.92, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.28 and a beta of 1.01.

Eaton (NYSE:ETN) last announced its quarterly 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 company had revenue of $6.35 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.35 billion. Eaton had a return on equity of 21.45% and a net margin of 15.12%. As a group, research analysts expect that Eaton Co. plc will post 10.74 EPS for the current year.

Eaton Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 23rd. Stockholders 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 dividend yield of 1.14%. Eaton’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 44.39%.

Insider Activity

In related news, insider Taras G. Jr. Szmagala sold 335 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, August 12th. The stock was 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 of the company’s stock, valued at $2,858,328. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. In related news, insider Taras G. Jr. Szmagala sold 335 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, August 12th. The stock was 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 of the company’s stock, valued at $2,858,328. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, Director Karenann K. Terrell purchased 500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, August 21st. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $298.97 per share, for a total transaction of $149,485.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 500 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $149,485. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 52,511 shares of company stock worth $15,809,326 over the last 90 days. 0.53% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms have recently weighed in on ETN. Morgan Stanley began coverage on Eaton in a research note on Friday, September 6th. They issued an “overweight” rating and a $370.00 price objective on the stock. Evercore ISI reduced their price objective on Eaton from $357.00 to $333.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, August 19th. Jefferies Financial Group lifted their price objective on Eaton from $370.00 to $385.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, July 11th. Citigroup initiated coverage on Eaton in a research report on Monday, September 16th. They set a “buy” rating and a $348.00 price target on the stock. Finally, Barclays boosted their price target on Eaton from $318.00 to $319.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Friday, August 2nd. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fourteen have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Eaton has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $337.41.

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.