Eaton Co. plc (NYSE:ETN) Receives Average Recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from Brokerages

Shares of Eaton Co. plc (NYSE:ETN) have received an average rating of “Moderate Buy” from the nineteen ratings firms that are presently covering the firm, Marketbeat.com reports. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation and twelve have issued a buy recommendation on the company. The average 12 month price objective among brokerages that have covered the stock in the last year is $357.16.

A number of brokerages have recently issued reports on ETN. Jefferies Financial Group lowered their price target on Eaton from $390.00 to $335.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, March 12th. Citigroup dropped their price target on shares of Eaton from $440.00 to $410.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, January 13th. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price objective on shares of Eaton from $335.00 to $305.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, March 5th. Barclays dropped their target price on shares of Eaton from $325.00 to $315.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday. Finally, StockNews.com lowered shares of Eaton from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, March 21st.

Eaton Stock Performance

Shares of ETN stock opened at $274.05 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $107.37 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 28.85, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.64 and a beta of 1.09. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.46, a quick ratio of 0.96 and a current ratio of 1.50. Eaton has a one year low of $255.65 and a one year high of $379.99. The company’s 50-day moving average is $305.90 and its 200 day moving average is $331.12.

Eaton (NYSE:ETN) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Friday, January 31st. The industrial products company reported $2.83 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.82 by $0.01. Eaton had a net margin of 15.25% and a return on equity of 22.62%. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $2.55 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts expect that Eaton will post 12.02 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Eaton Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 28th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 10th were given a dividend of $1.04 per share. This is a boost from Eaton’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.94. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, March 10th. This represents a $4.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.52%. Eaton’s payout ratio is 43.79%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Eaton

Several institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Capital A Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in Eaton in the 4th quarter worth about $26,000. Flagship Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Eaton during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Noble Wealth Management PBC purchased a new stake in shares of Eaton in the fourth quarter worth approximately $30,000. Horizon Bancorp Inc. IN lifted its stake in shares of Eaton by 321.7% during the 4th quarter. Horizon Bancorp Inc. IN now owns 97 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $32,000 after acquiring an additional 74 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Morse Asset Management Inc purchased a new position in Eaton during the 3rd quarter valued at $33,000. Institutional investors own 82.97% of the company’s stock.

Eaton Company 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.