Busey Bank Cuts Holdings in Eaton Co. plc (NYSE:ETN)

Busey Bank trimmed its holdings in shares of Eaton Co. plc (NYSE:ETN) by 1.9% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 11,538 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 229 shares during the period. Busey Bank’s holdings in Eaton were worth $3,829,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in ETN. Groupama Asset Managment boosted its stake in shares of Eaton by 83.2% in the 3rd quarter. Groupama Asset Managment now owns 9,463 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $31,000 after buying an additional 4,298 shares during the last quarter. Horizon Bancorp Inc. IN boosted its stake 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 buying an additional 74 shares during the last quarter. Morse Asset Management Inc purchased a new position in shares of Eaton in the 3rd quarter worth $33,000. West Financial Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Eaton in the 3rd quarter worth $35,000. Finally, DT Investment Partners LLC purchased a new position in shares of Eaton in the 3rd quarter worth $37,000. 82.97% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Eaton Price Performance

Shares of ETN stock opened at $317.90 on Thursday. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $351.98 and its two-hundred day moving average is $331.21. The company has a market capitalization of $125.63 billion, a PE ratio of 33.82, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.57 and a beta of 1.06. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.45, a current ratio of 1.53 and a quick ratio of 1.00. Eaton Co. plc has a 12 month low of $245.65 and a 12 month high of $379.99.

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. Eaton had a return on equity of 21.97% and a net margin of 15.32%. The company had revenue of $6.35 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $6.37 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $2.47 earnings per share. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 7.9% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts predict that Eaton Co. plc will post 10.79 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Eaton

In related news, insider Ernest W. Marshall, Jr. sold 1,412 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, November 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $378.58, for a total transaction of $534,554.96. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 31,200 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $11,811,696. This represents a 4.33 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, insider Craig Arnold sold 61,569 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, November 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $360.97, for a total transaction of $22,224,561.93. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 506,360 shares in the company, valued at $182,780,769.20. This represents a 10.84 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 76,981 shares of company stock valued at $27,660,117 over the last 90 days. 0.53% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts have recently issued reports on ETN shares. Bank of America raised their price target on Eaton from $350.00 to $410.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, November 13th. 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 report on Wednesday, January 15th. Sanford C. Bernstein assumed coverage on Eaton in a research report on Tuesday, November 5th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $382.00 price objective on the stock. Barclays boosted their price target on Eaton from $320.00 to $353.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Thursday, December 5th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group upped their target price on Eaton from $400.00 to $440.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, December 6th. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and thirteen have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $369.30.

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.