Eaton (NYSE:ETN) Raised to Peer Perform at Wolfe Research

Wolfe Research upgraded shares of Eaton (NYSE:ETN) from an underperform rating to a peer perform rating in a report published on Friday morning, Marketbeat.com reports.

A number of other equities analysts have also recently weighed in on ETN. Royal Bank of Canada cut their price target on Eaton from $376.00 to $371.00 and set an outperform rating for the company in a report on Friday, August 2nd. Jefferies Financial Group upped their target price on shares of Eaton from $370.00 to $385.00 and gave the company a buy rating in a report on Thursday, July 11th. Evercore ISI lowered their price target on shares of Eaton from $357.00 to $333.00 and set an outperform rating for the company in a report on Monday, August 19th. Barclays upped their price objective on shares of Eaton from $318.00 to $319.00 and gave the company an equal weight rating in a research note on Friday, August 2nd. Finally, Raymond James initiated coverage on Eaton in a report on Friday, June 28th. They issued an outperform rating and a $375.00 price target for the company. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fourteen have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Eaton has an average rating of Moderate Buy and a consensus target price of $335.18.

Eaton Price Performance

Shares of NYSE ETN opened at $289.38 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 1.56, a quick ratio of 1.07 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.44. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $302.03 and its 200 day moving average price is $311.45. Eaton has a 52 week low of $191.82 and a 52 week high of $345.19. The stock has a market cap of $115.20 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 34.17, a PEG ratio of 2.19 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, beating the consensus estimate of $2.61 by $0.12. Eaton had a net margin of 15.12% and a return on equity of 21.45%. The company had revenue of $6.35 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.35 billion. As a group, research analysts forecast that Eaton will post 10.74 earnings per share for the current fiscal 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 paid a $0.94 dividend. This represents a $3.76 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.30%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, August 5th. Eaton’s dividend payout ratio is currently 44.39%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Eaton news, Director Dorothy C. Thompson bought 2,205 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, September 3rd. The shares were acquired at an average price of $300.30 per share, with a total value of $662,161.50. Following the purchase, the director now owns 2,205 shares in the company, valued at approximately $662,161.50. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this link. In other Eaton news, insider Michael Yelton sold 3,136 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, August 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $303.12, for a total value of $950,584.32. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 3,914 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,186,411.68. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, Director Dorothy C. Thompson acquired 2,205 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, September 3rd. The shares were purchased at an average price of $300.30 per share, for a total transaction of $662,161.50. Following the purchase, the director now directly owns 2,205 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $662,161.50. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders sold 52,511 shares of company stock valued at $15,809,326. 0.53% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Eaton

Large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in Eaton during the 4th quarter worth approximately $1,087,983,000. Capital World Investors increased its stake in shares of Eaton by 323.8% in the first quarter. Capital World Investors now owns 3,192,576 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $998,255,000 after buying an additional 2,439,270 shares during the last quarter. Jennison Associates LLC raised its holdings in Eaton by 2,857.4% in the first quarter. Jennison Associates LLC now owns 1,262,479 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $394,752,000 after acquiring an additional 1,219,790 shares in the last quarter. Balyasny Asset Management L.P. boosted its stake in Eaton by 2,006.8% during the 4th quarter. Balyasny Asset Management L.P. now owns 964,728 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $232,326,000 after acquiring an additional 918,936 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Swedbank AB acquired a new position in Eaton during the 2nd quarter worth $225,974,000. 82.97% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.