Wright Investors Service Inc. Sells 2,405 Shares of Eaton Co. plc (NYSE:ETN)

Wright Investors Service Inc. cut its stake in Eaton Co. plc (NYSE:ETN) by 65.4% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 1,274 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 2,405 shares during the quarter. Wright Investors Service Inc.’s holdings in Eaton were worth $423,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of ETN. B. Riley Wealth Advisors Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Eaton by 48.9% in the third quarter. B. Riley Wealth Advisors Inc. now owns 41,106 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $13,533,000 after buying an additional 13,497 shares during the period. Interval Partners LP increased its stake in Eaton by 82.7% in the second quarter. Interval Partners LP now owns 151,716 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $47,571,000 after purchasing an additional 68,693 shares during the period. Scientech Research LLC lifted its position in shares of Eaton by 285.5% during the second quarter. Scientech Research LLC now owns 5,744 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $1,801,000 after purchasing an additional 4,254 shares during the last quarter. Neville Rodie & Shaw Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Eaton by 6.8% during the fourth quarter. Neville Rodie & Shaw Inc. now owns 38,386 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $12,739,000 after purchasing an additional 2,428 shares during the period. Finally, Wolverine Asset Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Eaton in the third quarter worth about $1,160,000. 82.97% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Eaton Price Performance

Shares of NYSE ETN opened at $340.60 on Tuesday. Eaton Co. plc has a fifty-two week low of $236.04 and a fifty-two week high of $379.99. The company has a market cap of $134.61 billion, a PE ratio of 36.23, a P/E/G ratio of 2.70 and a beta of 1.06. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.45, a quick ratio of 1.00 and a current ratio of 1.53. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $355.33 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $329.15.

Eaton (NYSE:ETN) last released its earnings results on Thursday, October 31st. The industrial products company reported $2.84 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.80 by $0.04. Eaton had a net margin of 15.32% and a return on equity of 21.97%. The company had revenue of $6.35 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.37 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $2.47 EPS. Eaton’s revenue was up 7.9% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities analysts expect that Eaton Co. plc will post 10.8 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Eaton Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, November 22nd. Shareholders of record on Monday, November 4th were paid a dividend of $0.94 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, November 4th. This represents a $3.76 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.10%. Eaton’s payout ratio is presently 40.00%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts have recently commented on ETN shares. Sanford C. Bernstein assumed coverage on shares of Eaton in a research report on Tuesday, November 5th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $382.00 target price on the stock. Mizuho lifted their target price on Eaton from $365.00 to $385.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, November 1st. Royal Bank of Canada increased their price target on Eaton from $374.00 to $392.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, January 3rd. Jefferies Financial Group upped their price objective on shares of Eaton from $400.00 to $440.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, December 6th. Finally, Bank of America upped their price target on shares of Eaton from $350.00 to $410.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, November 13th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and thirteen have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Eaton currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $367.61.

Insider Activity

In other Eaton news, insider Craig Arnold sold 61,569 shares of Eaton stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, November 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $360.97, for a total transaction of $22,224,561.93. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 506,360 shares in the company, valued at approximately $182,780,769.20. This trade represents a 10.84 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, Director Gregory R. Page sold 4,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, November 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $335.30, for a total value of $1,341,200.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 51,422 shares in the company, valued at $17,241,796.60. The trade was a 7.22 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 76,981 shares of company stock valued at $27,660,117. Company insiders own 0.53% 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.