ARS Investment Partners LLC Has $13.16 Million Stock Holdings in Eaton Co. plc (NYSE:ETN)

ARS Investment Partners LLC increased its position in Eaton Co. plc (NYSE:ETN) by 0.6% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 39,661 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after purchasing an additional 229 shares during the quarter. Eaton makes up 1.2% of ARS Investment Partners LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its 29th biggest position. ARS Investment Partners LLC’s holdings in Eaton were worth $13,162,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Edgestream Partners L.P. raised its position in shares of Eaton by 98.5% during the 2nd quarter. Edgestream Partners L.P. now owns 1,989 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $624,000 after acquiring an additional 987 shares during the last quarter. Seven Eight Capital LP acquired a new position in Eaton in the second quarter valued at about $270,000. King Luther Capital Management Corp boosted its holdings in Eaton by 19.4% during the second quarter. King Luther Capital Management Corp now owns 3,327 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $1,043,000 after buying an additional 541 shares during the last quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. increased its stake in shares of Eaton by 4.7% in the 2nd quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. now owns 32,897 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $10,315,000 after acquiring an additional 1,483 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Thrivent Financial for Lutherans raised its position in shares of Eaton by 110.2% in the 2nd quarter. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans now owns 57,820 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $18,129,000 after acquiring an additional 30,319 shares during the period. 82.97% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts recently issued reports on the stock. Royal Bank of Canada boosted their price objective on shares of Eaton from $374.00 to $392.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, January 3rd. Sanford C. Bernstein assumed coverage on shares of Eaton in a research report on Tuesday, November 5th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $382.00 price objective for the company. Citigroup reduced their target price on Eaton from $440.00 to $410.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, January 13th. Mizuho raised their price target on Eaton from $365.00 to $385.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, November 1st. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group boosted their price objective on Eaton from $400.00 to $440.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, December 6th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and thirteen have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $368.89.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director Gregory R. Page sold 4,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, November 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $335.30, for a total transaction of $1,341,200.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 51,422 shares in the company, valued at approximately $17,241,796.60. This trade represents a 7.22 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, insider Ernest W. Marshall, Jr. sold 1,412 shares of Eaton stock in a transaction dated Monday, November 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $378.58, for a total transaction of $534,554.96. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 31,200 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $11,811,696. This trade represents a 4.33 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 76,981 shares of company stock valued at $27,660,117 in the last quarter. Company insiders own 0.33% of the company’s stock.

Eaton Price Performance

NYSE:ETN opened at $346.54 on Tuesday. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $354.32 and its 200 day simple moving average is $329.97. Eaton Co. plc has a 52-week low of $236.20 and a 52-week high of $379.99. 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 company has a market cap of $136.95 billion, a P/E ratio of 36.87, a P/E/G ratio of 2.40 and a beta of 1.06.

Eaton (NYSE:ETN) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 31st. The industrial products company reported $2.84 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.80 by $0.04. The company had revenue of $6.35 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.37 billion. Eaton had a return on equity of 21.97% and a net margin of 15.32%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 7.9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $2.47 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Eaton Co. plc will post 10.79 EPS for the current fiscal year.

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.