SeaCrest Wealth Management LLC Lowers Stake in Eaton Co. plc (NYSE:ETN)

SeaCrest Wealth Management LLC reduced its position in Eaton Co. plc (NYSE:ETN) by 5.0% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 6,761 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 359 shares during the period. SeaCrest Wealth Management LLC’s holdings in Eaton were worth $1,588,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of ETN. Red Spruce Capital LLC boosted its position in shares of Eaton by 0.3% during the 4th quarter. Red Spruce Capital LLC now owns 17,522 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $4,220,000 after purchasing an additional 45 shares in the last quarter. GSG Advisors LLC increased its holdings in shares of Eaton by 2.1% in the fourth quarter. GSG Advisors LLC now owns 2,227 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $519,000 after buying an additional 46 shares in the last quarter. Global Trust Asset Management LLC lifted its position in shares of Eaton by 33.3% during the 4th quarter. Global Trust Asset Management LLC now owns 200 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $48,000 after acquiring an additional 50 shares during the last quarter. Proficio Capital Partners LLC boosted its stake in shares of Eaton by 2.9% during the 3rd quarter. Proficio Capital Partners LLC now owns 1,836 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $392,000 after acquiring an additional 51 shares in the last quarter. Finally, S.A. Mason LLC grew its holdings in shares of Eaton by 6.8% in the 4th quarter. S.A. Mason LLC now owns 801 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $193,000 after acquiring an additional 51 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 82.97% of the company’s stock.

Eaton Stock Down 0.5 %

Shares of Eaton stock traded down $1.72 during midday trading on Thursday, reaching $312.68. 1,977,505 shares of the company’s stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,779,236. Eaton Co. plc has a 52 week low of $155.38 and a 52 week high of $317.02. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $280.35 and its 200 day simple moving average is $243.15. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.43, a quick ratio of 1.02 and a current ratio of 1.51. The company has a market cap of $124.92 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 38.99, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.59 and a beta of 1.07.

Eaton (NYSE:ETN) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, February 1st. The industrial products company reported $2.55 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.47 by $0.08. Eaton had a return on equity of 20.05% and a net margin of 13.88%. The firm had revenue of $5.97 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $5.91 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $2.06 earnings per share. The company’s revenue was up 10.8% on a year-over-year basis. Equities analysts expect that Eaton Co. plc will post 10.25 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Eaton Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 29th. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 11th will be paid a $0.94 dividend. This is an increase from Eaton’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.86. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 8th. This represents a $3.76 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.20%. Eaton’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 46.88%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts recently weighed in on ETN shares. Evercore ISI increased their price target on Eaton from $262.00 to $308.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 20th. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their target price on shares of Eaton from $220.00 to $257.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, December 19th. The Goldman Sachs Group raised their target price on Eaton from $287.00 to $328.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, March 15th. Royal Bank of Canada upped their price target on Eaton from $246.00 to $286.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Thursday, March 14th. Finally, UBS Group raised their price objective on Eaton from $255.00 to $305.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, February 2nd. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have given a hold rating and twelve have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $274.20.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Eaton news, insider Olivier Leonetti sold 4,461 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $272.00, for a total value of $1,213,392.00. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 630 shares in the company, valued at approximately $171,360. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. In other Eaton news, insider Olivier Leonetti sold 4,461 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $272.00, for a total value of $1,213,392.00. Following the sale, the insider now owns 630 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $171,360. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, insider Heath B. Monesmith sold 13,027 shares of Eaton stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $291.40, for a total transaction of $3,796,067.80. Following the sale, the insider now owns 69,472 shares in the company, valued at $20,244,140.80. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 38,969 shares of company stock valued at $10,904,774. 0.53% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

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.