Eaton Co. plc (NYSE:ETN) Shares Sold by SouthState Corp

SouthState Corp cut its position in shares of Eaton Co. plc (NYSE:ETN) by 3.3% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 2,564 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 87 shares during the quarter. SouthState Corp’s holdings in Eaton were worth $617,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. Running Oak Capital LLC purchased a new position in Eaton during the fourth quarter worth approximately $9,009,000. Levin Capital Strategies L.P. boosted its position in Eaton by 6.5% during the 4th quarter. Levin Capital Strategies L.P. now owns 16,300 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $3,925,000 after purchasing an additional 1,000 shares during the period. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of Eaton by 18.3% during the fourth quarter. Los Angeles Capital Management LLC now owns 284,050 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $68,405,000 after purchasing an additional 43,853 shares in the last quarter. Commonwealth Equity Services LLC raised its holdings in shares of Eaton by 3.1% during the 4th quarter. Commonwealth Equity Services LLC now owns 141,223 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $34,009,000 after buying an additional 4,234 shares during the period. Finally, First Horizon Advisors Inc. lifted its position in Eaton by 2.3% during the 4th quarter. First Horizon Advisors Inc. now owns 7,045 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $1,697,000 after acquiring an additional 156 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 82.97% of the company’s stock.

Eaton Stock Performance

ETN stock traded up $6.15 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $320.50. The company had a trading volume of 1,764,701 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,036,619. Eaton Co. plc has a one year low of $165.24 and a one year high of $333.05. The stock has a market capitalization of $128.14 billion, a P/E ratio of 37.84, a P/E/G ratio of 2.55 and a beta of 1.06. The company has a quick ratio of 1.02, a current ratio of 1.56 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.42. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $307.97 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $261.18.

Eaton (NYSE:ETN) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, April 30th. The industrial products company reported $2.40 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.28 by $0.12. The firm had revenue of $5.94 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $5.91 billion. Eaton had a net margin of 14.38% and a return on equity of 20.69%. Eaton’s quarterly revenue was up 8.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $1.88 EPS. Research analysts anticipate that Eaton Co. plc will post 10.42 EPS for the current year.

Eaton Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 24th. Investors of record on Monday, May 6th will be paid a dividend of $0.94 per share. This represents a $3.76 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.17%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, May 3rd. Eaton’s dividend payout ratio is currently 44.39%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Eaton news, insider Ernest W. Marshall, Jr. sold 19,750 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $273.17, for a total transaction of $5,395,107.50. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 29,712 shares in the company, valued at approximately $8,116,427.04. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. In other Eaton news, insider Ernest W. Marshall, Jr. sold 19,750 shares of Eaton stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $273.17, for a total value of $5,395,107.50. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 29,712 shares in the company, valued at $8,116,427.04. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, insider Peter Denk sold 1,731 shares of the stock in a transaction on 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 transaction, the insider now 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. Insiders sold 38,969 shares of company stock valued at $10,904,774 over the last 90 days. 0.53% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

ETN has been the subject of several analyst reports. Royal Bank of Canada upgraded shares of Eaton from a “sector perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and upped their target price for the company from $286.00 to $371.00 in a research note on Friday, April 5th. 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 report on Monday, March 18th. UBS Group lifted their price objective on Eaton from $255.00 to $305.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, February 2nd. Argus increased their target price on Eaton from $290.00 to $350.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday. Finally, HSBC upped their price target on shares of Eaton from $240.00 to $280.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Friday. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have assigned a hold rating and twelve have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $314.27.

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.