Eaton Co. plc (ETN) to Issue Quarterly Dividend of $1.04 on March 28th

Eaton Co. plc (NYSE:ETN) declared a quarterly dividend on Thursday, February 27th, RTT News reports. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 10th will be given a dividend of 1.04 per share by the industrial products company on Friday, March 28th. This represents a $4.16 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.46%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 10th. This is a 10.6% increase from Eaton’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.94.

Eaton has a dividend payout ratio of 31.5% indicating that its dividend is sufficiently covered by earnings. Research analysts expect Eaton to earn $13.52 per share next year, which means the company should continue to be able to cover its $3.76 annual dividend with an expected future payout ratio of 27.8%.

Eaton Stock Up 2.8 %

NYSE:ETN opened at $285.29 on Friday. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $321.13 and its 200-day simple moving average is $331.71. The company has a quick ratio of 0.96, a current ratio of 1.50 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.46. The firm has a market capitalization of $111.83 billion, a P/E ratio of 30.03, a P/E/G ratio of 2.64 and a beta of 1.09. Eaton has a 12-month low of $255.65 and a 12-month high of $379.99.

Eaton (NYSE:ETN) last posted its earnings results on Friday, January 31st. The industrial products company reported $2.83 earnings per share 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 firm earned $2.55 EPS. Equities research analysts expect that Eaton will post 12.02 earnings per share for the current year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Eaton news, Director Gregory R. Page sold 10,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, December 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $355.98, for a total transaction of $3,559,800.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 43,203 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $15,379,403.94. The trade was a 18.80 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Company insiders own 0.53% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Eaton

A hedge fund recently raised its stake in Eaton stock. Brighton Jones LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Eaton Co. plc (NYSE:ETN) by 1.4% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 3,341 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after buying an additional 45 shares during the quarter. Brighton Jones LLC’s holdings in Eaton were worth $1,109,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period. 82.97% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts have weighed in on ETN shares. Barclays reduced their target price on Eaton from $353.00 to $325.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, March 3rd. Wells Fargo & Company cut their price target on Eaton from $335.00 to $305.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday. Bank of America boosted their price target on Eaton from $350.00 to $410.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, November 13th. Melius Research restated a “hold” rating and issued a $373.00 price target on shares of Eaton in a report on Tuesday, January 28th. Finally, Citigroup cut their price target on Eaton from $440.00 to $410.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, January 13th. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twelve have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, Eaton presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $362.58.

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.