Eaton (NYSE:ETN) Reaches New 12-Month Low After Analyst Downgrade

Eaton Co. plc (NYSE:ETN)’s share price reached a new 52-week low on Friday after Barclays lowered their price target on the stock from $315.00 to $306.00. Barclays currently has an equal weight rating on the stock. Eaton traded as low as $245.85 and last traded at $246.65, with a volume of 348107 shares traded. The stock had previously closed at $260.85.

A number of other equities research analysts have also weighed in on ETN. Melius lowered Eaton from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and set a $373.00 price target on the stock. in a research note on Tuesday, January 28th. KeyCorp upgraded shares of Eaton from a “sector weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and set a $340.00 price target on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, March 12th. Jefferies Financial Group lowered their price objective on shares of Eaton from $390.00 to $335.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, March 12th. Melius Research restated a “hold” rating and issued a $373.00 target price on shares of Eaton in a research note on Tuesday, January 28th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their price target on Eaton from $350.00 to $348.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, January 15th. Eight research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twelve have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $356.68.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Eaton

Hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the company. Capital A Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in Eaton during the fourth quarter worth approximately $26,000. Flagship Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Eaton during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Noble Wealth Management PBC acquired a new stake in Eaton in the 4th quarter valued at $30,000. Groupama Asset Managment increased its holdings in Eaton by 83.2% in the 3rd quarter. Groupama Asset Managment now owns 9,463 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $31,000 after acquiring an additional 4,298 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Horizon Bancorp Inc. IN raised its position in Eaton by 321.7% during the fourth 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 period. 82.97% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Eaton Trading Down 5.6 %

The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $296.43 and its 200-day simple moving average is $330.13. The firm has a market capitalization of $96.52 billion, a PE ratio of 25.93, a P/E/G ratio of 2.64 and a beta of 1.09. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.46, a current ratio of 1.50 and a quick ratio of 0.96.

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

Eaton Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 28th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 10th were paid a dividend of $1.04 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, March 10th. This is an increase from Eaton’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.94. This represents a $4.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.69%. Eaton’s payout ratio is 43.79%.

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.