Eaton Co. plc (NYSE:ETN) Stake Increased by SlateStone Wealth LLC

SlateStone Wealth LLC increased its stake in Eaton Co. plc (NYSE:ETN) by 4.0% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 4,630 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after buying an additional 176 shares during the period. SlateStone Wealth LLC’s holdings in Eaton were worth $1,536,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in ETN. Noble Wealth Management PBC acquired a new position in Eaton in the fourth quarter worth $30,000. Groupama Asset Managment boosted its holdings in Eaton by 83.2% in the third quarter. Groupama Asset Managment now owns 9,463 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $31,000 after purchasing an additional 4,298 shares during the period. Horizon Bancorp Inc. IN boosted its holdings in Eaton by 321.7% in the fourth quarter. Horizon Bancorp Inc. IN now owns 97 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $32,000 after purchasing an additional 74 shares during the period. Morse Asset Management Inc acquired a new position in Eaton in the third quarter worth $33,000. Finally, Activest Wealth Management boosted its holdings in Eaton by 621.4% in the fourth quarter. Activest Wealth Management now owns 101 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $34,000 after purchasing an additional 87 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 82.97% of the company’s stock.

Eaton Price Performance

Shares of Eaton stock opened at $294.53 on Monday. 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 company’s 50-day moving average price is $316.31 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $331.81. Eaton Co. plc has a 52 week low of $255.65 and a 52 week high of $379.99. The stock has a market cap of $115.45 billion, a PE ratio of 31.00, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.64 and a beta of 1.09.

Eaton (NYSE:ETN) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Friday, January 31st. The industrial products company reported $2.83 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate 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 previous year, the firm earned $2.55 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Eaton Co. plc will post 12.02 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Eaton Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 28th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 10th will be issued a dividend of $1.04 per share. This represents a $4.16 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.41%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 10th. This is an increase from Eaton’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.94. Eaton’s payout ratio is presently 43.79%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

ETN has been the subject of several analyst reports. Royal Bank of Canada reduced their price target on shares of Eaton from $405.00 to $376.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, March 6th. Citigroup reduced their price target on shares of Eaton from $440.00 to $410.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Monday, January 13th. Jefferies Financial Group reduced their price target on shares of Eaton from $390.00 to $335.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, March 12th. KeyCorp raised shares of Eaton from a “sector weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and set a $340.00 price target for the company in a report on Wednesday, March 12th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price target on shares of Eaton from $350.00 to $348.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, January 15th. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twelve have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $357.68.

Eaton 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.