Natural Investments LLC Acquires Shares of 8,380 Eaton Co. plc (NYSE:ETN)

Natural Investments LLC bought a new position in shares of Eaton Co. plc (NYSE:ETN) during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm bought 8,380 shares of the industrial products company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,781,000.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of ETN. Noble Wealth Management PBC bought a new stake in shares of Eaton in the fourth quarter valued at about $30,000. Horizon Bancorp Inc. IN raised its holdings in shares of Eaton by 321.7% in the 4th quarter. Horizon Bancorp Inc. IN now owns 97 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $32,000 after purchasing an additional 74 shares in the last quarter. Morse Asset Management Inc purchased a new stake in shares of Eaton in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $33,000. Activest Wealth Management boosted its stake in shares of Eaton by 621.4% during the fourth quarter. Activest Wealth Management now owns 101 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $34,000 after purchasing an additional 87 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Hager Investment Management Services LLC bought a new position in Eaton in the fourth quarter worth approximately $38,000. Institutional investors own 82.97% of the company’s stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

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

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts have commented on the stock. Melius Research reiterated a “hold” rating and issued a $373.00 target price on shares of Eaton in a report on Tuesday, January 28th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price objective on shares of Eaton from $350.00 to $348.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, January 15th. UBS Group began coverage on shares of Eaton in a research note on Wednesday, November 13th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $431.00 target price for the company. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price target on shares of Eaton from $335.00 to $305.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, March 5th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada dropped their price objective on shares of Eaton from $405.00 to $376.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, March 6th. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twelve have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $362.58.

Eaton Price Performance

NYSE:ETN opened at $277.16 on Tuesday. The firm has a market cap of $108.65 billion, a P/E ratio of 29.17, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.64 and a beta of 1.09. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $320.02 and a two-hundred day moving average of $332.04. Eaton Co. plc has a 12 month low of $255.65 and a 12 month high of $379.99. The company has a current ratio of 1.50, a quick ratio of 0.96 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.46.

Eaton (NYSE:ETN) last released its earnings results on Friday, January 31st. The industrial products company reported $2.83 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.82 by $0.01. Eaton had a net margin of 15.25% and a return on equity of 22.62%. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $2.55 earnings per share. On average, analysts expect that Eaton Co. plc will post 12.02 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Eaton Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 28th. Investors of record on Monday, March 10th will be given a dividend of $1.04 per share. This is an increase from Eaton’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.94. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 10th. This represents a $4.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.50%. Eaton’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 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.