Eaton Co. plc (NYSE:ETN) Shares Bought by Choate Investment Advisors

Choate Investment Advisors boosted its position in shares of Eaton Co. plc (NYSE:ETN) by 8.3% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 3,975 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after buying an additional 305 shares during the period. Choate Investment Advisors’ holdings in Eaton were worth $1,319,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. United Bank acquired a new position in shares of Eaton in the third quarter valued at approximately $258,000. GSA Capital Partners LLP purchased a new stake in Eaton during the third quarter worth $295,000. OneDigital Investment Advisors LLC boosted its position in Eaton by 4.4% during the third quarter. OneDigital Investment Advisors LLC now owns 7,309 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $2,422,000 after purchasing an additional 305 shares in the last quarter. Impax Asset Management Group plc purchased a new stake in Eaton during the third quarter worth $2,347,000. Finally, Sheaff Brock Investment Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Eaton in the third quarter valued at $229,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 82.97% of the company’s stock.

Eaton Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:ETN opened at $294.53 on Monday. The company has a market cap of $115.45 billion, a P/E ratio of 31.00, a PEG ratio of 2.64 and a beta of 1.09. 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 Co. plc has a one year low of $255.65 and a one year high of $379.99. The business’s 50-day simple moving average is $316.31 and its 200 day simple moving average is $331.81.

Eaton (NYSE:ETN) last announced 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 return on equity of 22.62% and a net margin of 15.25%. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $2.55 EPS. On average, 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. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 10th will be paid a dividend of $1.04 per share. This represents a $4.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.41%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 10th. This is a positive change from Eaton’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.94. Eaton’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 43.79%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages have recently issued reports on ETN. Barclays reduced their price objective on Eaton from $353.00 to $325.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, March 3rd. Citigroup dropped their target price on Eaton from $440.00 to $410.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, January 13th. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their target price on Eaton from $335.00 to $305.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, March 5th. Melius Research reiterated a “hold” rating and issued a $373.00 target price on shares of Eaton in a research note on Tuesday, January 28th. Finally, KeyCorp upgraded Eaton from a “sector weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and set a $340.00 target price for the company in a research note on Wednesday, March 12th. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twelve have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price 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.