Eaton Co. plc (NYSE:ETN) Shares Sold by Jacobi Capital Management LLC

Jacobi Capital Management LLC decreased its position in Eaton Co. plc (NYSE:ETN) by 1.7% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 6,583 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 112 shares during the quarter. Jacobi Capital Management LLC’s holdings in Eaton were worth $2,184,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Geode Capital Management LLC raised its stake in Eaton by 0.7% in the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 8,069,341 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $2,665,342,000 after purchasing an additional 56,516 shares during the last quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. raised its stake in Eaton by 15.1% in the 3rd quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 2,421,626 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $836,938,000 after purchasing an additional 316,830 shares during the last quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC raised its stake in Eaton by 32.8% in the 3rd quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC now owns 2,419,200 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $801,798,000 after purchasing an additional 597,700 shares during the last quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC raised its stake in Eaton by 253.2% in the 3rd quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 2,273,685 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $753,590,000 after purchasing an additional 1,629,856 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. raised its stake in Eaton by 1.0% in the 4th quarter. Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. now owns 1,436,051 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $476,582,000 after purchasing an additional 13,862 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 82.97% of the company’s stock.

Eaton Stock Performance

ETN stock opened at $293.21 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 1.50, a quick ratio of 0.96 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.46. The firm has a market cap of $115.88 billion, a P/E ratio of 30.86, a P/E/G ratio of 2.64 and a beta of 1.05. Eaton Co. plc has a 12-month low of $255.65 and a 12-month high of $379.99. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $326.90 and its 200 day simple moving average is $332.29.

Eaton (NYSE:ETN) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Friday, January 31st. The industrial products company reported $2.83 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating 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 company posted $2.55 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Eaton Co. plc will post 12.02 EPS for the current year.

Eaton Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 28th. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 10th will be given a dividend of $1.04 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 10th. This represents a $4.16 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.42%. This is a positive change from Eaton’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.94. Eaton’s dividend payout ratio is currently 39.58%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms have commented on ETN. Mizuho lifted their price target on Eaton from $365.00 to $385.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, November 1st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their price target on Eaton from $350.00 to $348.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, January 15th. Jefferies Financial Group lifted their price target on Eaton from $400.00 to $440.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, December 6th. Royal Bank of Canada restated an “outperform” rating on shares of Eaton in a report on Thursday, February 13th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company restated an “equal weight” rating on shares of Eaton in a report on Thursday, February 13th. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and thirteen have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Eaton currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $366.05.

Insider Activity at Eaton

In other news, Director Gregory R. Page sold 10,000 shares of Eaton 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 sale, the director now owns 43,203 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $15,379,403.94. The trade was a 18.80 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. 0.33% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

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.