PNC Financial Services Group Inc. Reduces Position in Eaton Co. plc (NYSE:ETN)

PNC Financial Services Group Inc. trimmed its holdings in Eaton Co. plc (NYSE:ETN) by 1.6% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 908,204 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 14,829 shares during the quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. owned 0.23% of Eaton worth $301,406,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Noble Wealth Management PBC acquired a new position in shares of Eaton in the fourth quarter worth about $30,000. Horizon Bancorp Inc. IN raised its holdings in Eaton by 321.7% in the 4th quarter. Horizon Bancorp Inc. IN now owns 97 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $32,000 after acquiring an additional 74 shares during the last quarter. Morse Asset Management Inc acquired a new stake in Eaton in the 3rd quarter valued at about $33,000. Activest Wealth Management grew its stake in shares of Eaton by 621.4% in the 4th quarter. Activest Wealth Management now owns 101 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $34,000 after buying an additional 87 shares during the period. Finally, Hager Investment Management Services LLC purchased a new position in shares of Eaton during the 4th quarter worth approximately $38,000. 82.97% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Activity

In other Eaton news, Director Gregory R. Page sold 10,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated 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 completion of 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 legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Company insiders own 0.53% of the company’s stock.

Eaton Stock Performance

Shares of ETN stock opened at $285.29 on Friday. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $321.13 and a 200 day moving average price of $331.71. The stock has a market cap of $111.83 billion, a PE ratio of 30.03, a P/E/G ratio of 2.64 and a beta of 1.09. Eaton Co. plc has a 1 year low of $255.65 and a 1 year high of $379.99. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.46, a quick ratio of 0.96 and a current ratio of 1.50.

Eaton (NYSE:ETN) last released its quarterly earnings results on Friday, January 31st. The industrial products company reported $2.83 earnings per share for the quarter, topping 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 in the prior year, the business earned $2.55 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts forecast that Eaton Co. plc will post 12.02 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Eaton Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 28th. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 10th will be given a $1.04 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 10th. This represents a $4.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.46%. This is an increase from Eaton’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.94. Eaton’s payout ratio is currently 43.79%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

ETN has been the topic of a number of research reports. Citigroup reduced their target price on shares of Eaton from $440.00 to $410.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, January 13th. UBS Group started coverage on shares of Eaton in a report on Wednesday, November 13th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $431.00 price objective on the stock. Melius lowered shares of Eaton from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and set a $373.00 price target on the stock. in a research note on Tuesday, January 28th. Jefferies Financial Group lifted their price target on shares of Eaton from $400.00 to $440.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, December 6th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their target price on Eaton from $350.00 to $348.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, January 15th. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twelve have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $362.58.

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.