KBC Group NV Buys 26,995 Shares of Eaton Co. plc (NYSE:ETN)

KBC Group NV lifted its position in shares of Eaton Co. plc (NYSE:ETN) by 89.8% during the 3rd quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The fund owned 57,044 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after purchasing an additional 26,995 shares during the period. KBC Group NV’s holdings in Eaton were worth $18,906,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Breakwater Investment Management increased its holdings in Eaton by 1,560.0% in the second quarter. Breakwater Investment Management now owns 83 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $26,000 after purchasing an additional 78 shares during the period. Proffitt & Goodson Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Eaton during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $29,000. LGT Financial Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Eaton in the second quarter valued at $33,000. West Financial Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Eaton during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $35,000. Finally, DT Investment Partners LLC bought a new position in shares of Eaton in the 3rd quarter worth $37,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 82.97% of the company’s stock.

Eaton Stock Down 0.8 %

ETN opened at $358.99 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 1.53, a quick ratio of 1.00 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.45. Eaton Co. plc has a 12 month low of $224.52 and a 12 month high of $373.49. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $334.34 and its 200-day moving average price is $321.13. The company has a market cap of $141.87 billion, a P/E ratio of 38.19, a P/E/G ratio of 2.96 and a beta of 1.01.

Eaton (NYSE:ETN) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, October 31st. The industrial products company reported $2.84 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.80 by $0.04. The company had revenue of $6.35 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $6.37 billion. Eaton had a return on equity of 21.97% and a net margin of 15.32%. Eaton’s quarterly revenue was up 7.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the firm earned $2.47 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts expect that Eaton Co. plc will post 10.79 EPS for the current year.

Eaton Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 22nd. Stockholders of record on Monday, November 4th will be given a $0.94 dividend. This represents a $3.76 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.05%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, November 4th. Eaton’s dividend payout ratio is currently 40.00%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, insider Michael Yelton sold 3,136 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, August 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $303.12, for a total transaction of $950,584.32. Following the sale, the insider now owns 3,914 shares in the company, valued at $1,186,411.68. This represents a 44.48 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, insider Craig Arnold sold 61,569 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, November 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $360.97, for a total value of $22,224,561.93. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 506,360 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $182,780,769.20. This represents a 10.84 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 68,705 shares of company stock worth $24,516,346. 0.53% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages have commented on ETN. Bank of America boosted their price objective on Eaton from $350.00 to $410.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday. Sanford C. Bernstein assumed coverage on shares of Eaton in a research note on Tuesday, November 5th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $382.00 price target for the company. Mizuho boosted their price target on shares of Eaton from $365.00 to $385.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, November 1st. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price target on shares of Eaton from $315.00 to $342.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Monday, October 7th. Finally, Raymond James lowered their price objective on Eaton from $375.00 to $365.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, September 9th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and thirteen have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Eaton currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $357.83.

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.