Meiji Yasuda Asset Management Co Ltd. Grows Stock Holdings in Eaton Co. plc (NYSE:ETN)

Meiji Yasuda Asset Management Co Ltd. increased its holdings in shares of Eaton Co. plc (NYSE:ETN) by 0.6% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 35,780 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after purchasing an additional 220 shares during the period. Meiji Yasuda Asset Management Co Ltd.’s holdings in Eaton were worth $11,874,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in ETN. Flagship Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Eaton during the 4th quarter worth approximately $27,000. Noble Wealth Management PBC bought a new position in Eaton during the 4th quarter valued at $30,000. Horizon Bancorp Inc. IN increased its position 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 worth $32,000 after purchasing an additional 74 shares during the last quarter. Morse Asset Management Inc acquired a new stake in shares of Eaton in the 3rd quarter valued at about $33,000. Finally, Activest Wealth Management lifted its position 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 worth $34,000 after purchasing an additional 87 shares during the last quarter. 82.97% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts have commented on the company. Jefferies Financial Group reduced their target price on Eaton from $390.00 to $335.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, March 12th. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price objective 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. Melius cut shares of Eaton from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and set a $373.00 target price on the stock. in a report on Tuesday, January 28th. 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, Citigroup lowered their target price on Eaton from $440.00 to $410.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Monday, January 13th. 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, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $357.68.

Eaton Price Performance

Shares of Eaton stock opened at $303.41 on Tuesday. Eaton Co. plc has a 52 week low of $255.65 and a 52 week 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. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $310.56 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $331.79. The stock has a market cap of $118.87 billion, a PE ratio of 31.94, 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 EPS for the quarter, beating 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 quarter last year, the firm earned $2.55 earnings per share. 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 announced 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 is a positive change from Eaton’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.94. This represents a $4.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.37%. Eaton’s payout ratio is 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.