Eaton Co. plc (NYSE:ETN) Shares Sold by Mechanics Financial Corp

Mechanics Financial Corp trimmed its holdings in shares of Eaton Co. plc (NYSE:ETN) by 5.0% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 1,900 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 100 shares during the period. Mechanics Financial Corp’s holdings in Eaton were worth $631,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the business. B. Riley Wealth Advisors Inc. boosted its position in shares of Eaton by 48.9% during the 3rd quarter. B. Riley Wealth Advisors Inc. now owns 41,106 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $13,533,000 after purchasing an additional 13,497 shares in the last quarter. Lighthouse Wealth Management Inc. purchased a new stake in Eaton during the fourth quarter worth about $297,000. Webster Bank N. A. grew its position in Eaton by 52.4% during the fourth quarter. Webster Bank N. A. now owns 17,925 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $5,949,000 after buying an additional 6,166 shares during the period. Ballentine Partners LLC increased its holdings in Eaton by 9.3% in the fourth quarter. Ballentine Partners LLC now owns 9,256 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $3,072,000 after buying an additional 790 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Blue Trust Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Eaton by 13.2% during the 4th quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 14,494 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $4,804,000 after acquiring an additional 1,694 shares in the last quarter. 82.97% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms recently weighed in on ETN. StockNews.com downgraded Eaton from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, March 21st. Citigroup dropped their price target on Eaton from $440.00 to $410.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, January 13th. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price objective on shares of Eaton from $335.00 to $305.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, March 5th. Jefferies Financial Group cut their target price on shares of Eaton from $390.00 to $335.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, March 12th. Finally, Barclays lowered their price target on shares of Eaton from $325.00 to $315.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday. Eight equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twelve have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Eaton has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $357.16.

Eaton Stock Down 2.4 %

ETN opened at $274.05 on Friday. Eaton Co. plc has a 12 month low of $255.65 and a 12 month high of $379.99. The business has a 50-day moving average of $305.90 and a two-hundred day moving average of $331.12. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.46, a current ratio of 1.50 and a quick ratio of 0.96. The stock has a market capitalization of $107.37 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 28.85, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.64 and a beta of 1.09.

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, beating 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 period in the prior year, the business earned $2.55 earnings per share. On average, research analysts expect that Eaton Co. plc will post 12.02 earnings per share for the current year.

Eaton Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 28th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 10th were given a dividend of $1.04 per share. This represents a $4.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.52%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, March 10th. This is an increase from Eaton’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.94. Eaton’s payout ratio is 43.79%.

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.