Eaton (NYSE:ETN) Price Target Increased to $280.00 by Analysts at HSBC

Eaton (NYSE:ETN) had its target price upped by HSBC from $240.00 to $280.00 in a report released on Friday morning, Benzinga reports. HSBC currently has a hold rating on the industrial products company’s stock.

Several other brokerages also recently weighed in on ETN. Argus raised their target price on shares of Eaton from $290.00 to $350.00 and gave the company a buy rating in a research note on Thursday. Royal Bank of Canada upgraded shares of Eaton from a sector perform rating to an outperform rating and lifted their price objective for the stock from $286.00 to $371.00 in a research note on Friday, April 5th. Evercore ISI lifted their price objective on shares of Eaton from $262.00 to $308.00 and gave the stock an outperform rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 20th. Berenberg Bank lifted their price objective on shares of Eaton from $200.00 to $345.00 and gave the stock a buy rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 6th. Finally, Barclays upgraded shares of Eaton from an underweight rating to an equal weight rating and lifted their price objective for the stock from $250.00 to $300.00 in a research note on Tuesday, April 2nd. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have given a hold rating and twelve have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Eaton currently has an average rating of Moderate Buy and a consensus price target of $314.27.

Eaton Stock Up 2.0 %

Shares of NYSE ETN traded up $6.15 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $320.50. 1,769,790 shares of the company’s stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,741,837. The company has a quick ratio of 1.02, a current ratio of 1.56 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.42. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $308.68 and its 200-day simple moving average is $261.94. Eaton has a one year low of $165.24 and a one year high of $333.05. The company has a market cap of $128.14 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 37.84, a P/E/G ratio of 2.49 and a beta of 1.06.

Eaton (NYSE:ETN) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, April 30th. The industrial products company reported $2.40 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.28 by $0.12. The company had revenue of $5.94 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.91 billion. Eaton had a net margin of 14.38% and a return on equity of 20.69%. Eaton’s revenue was up 8.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the firm earned $1.88 earnings per share. On average, analysts predict that Eaton will post 10.45 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Eaton Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 24th. Shareholders of record on Monday, May 6th will be given a $0.94 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, May 3rd. This represents a $3.76 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.17%. Eaton’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 44.39%.

Insider Transactions at Eaton

In other news, insider Heath B. Monesmith sold 13,027 shares of the business’s 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 completion of the sale, the insider now owns 69,472 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $20,244,140.80. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In related news, insider Peter Denk sold 1,731 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $288.97, for a total transaction of $500,207.07. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 5,514 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,593,380.58. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, insider Heath B. Monesmith sold 13,027 shares of the company’s 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 directly owns 69,472 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $20,244,140.80. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 38,969 shares of company stock valued at $10,904,774 over the last 90 days. Corporate insiders own 0.53% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Eaton

Several large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its stake in shares of Eaton by 0.7% in the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 36,595,656 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $8,812,966,000 after buying an additional 259,615 shares during the period. FMR LLC grew its stake in shares of Eaton by 36.0% in the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 19,921,979 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $4,248,960,000 after buying an additional 5,270,331 shares during the period. Northern Trust Corp grew its stake in shares of Eaton by 2.2% in the 3rd quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 5,009,435 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $1,068,412,000 after buying an additional 109,775 shares during the period. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in shares of Eaton in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $1,087,983,000. Finally, Coatue Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Eaton by 5.2% in the 4th quarter. Coatue Management LLC now owns 3,986,445 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $960,016,000 after acquiring an additional 195,809 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 82.97% of the company’s stock.

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.