Eaton (NYSE:ETN) Lifted to “Outperform” at Royal Bank of Canada

Eaton (NYSE:ETN) was upgraded by research analysts at Royal Bank of Canada to an “outperform” rating in a report issued on Friday, Stock Target Advisor reports. The firm presently has a $371.00 price objective on the industrial products company’s stock, up from their previous price objective of $286.00. Royal Bank of Canada’s target price points to a potential upside of 15.88% from the company’s previous close.

Several other research analysts have also weighed in on the stock. Mizuho upped their price objective on shares of Eaton from $300.00 to $340.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 20th. Barclays upgraded shares of Eaton from an “underweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and upped their price objective for the company from $250.00 to $300.00 in a research note on Tuesday. UBS Group upped their price objective on shares of Eaton from $255.00 to $305.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, February 2nd. The Goldman Sachs Group upped their price objective on shares of Eaton from $287.00 to $328.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, March 15th. Finally, Berenberg Bank upped their price objective on shares of Eaton from $200.00 to $345.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 6th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and thirteen have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Eaton currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $287.40.

Eaton Trading Down 0.2 %

Shares of NYSE:ETN opened at $320.16 on Friday. The company has a 50 day moving average of $287.55 and a 200-day moving average of $246.27. The firm has a market cap of $127.90 billion, a P/E ratio of 39.92, a P/E/G ratio of 2.66 and a beta of 1.07. Eaton has a twelve month low of $155.38 and a twelve month high of $326.21. The company has a current ratio of 1.51, a quick ratio of 1.02 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.43.

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

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, insider Ernest W. Marshall, Jr. sold 19,750 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $273.17, for a total transaction of $5,395,107.50. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 29,712 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $8,116,427.04. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. In related news, insider Heath B. Monesmith sold 13,027 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on 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 directly owns 69,472 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $20,244,140.80. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, insider Ernest W. Marshall, Jr. sold 19,750 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $273.17, for a total transaction of $5,395,107.50. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 29,712 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $8,116,427.04. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders sold 38,969 shares of company stock valued at $10,904,774. Company insiders own 0.53% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Eaton

Several large investors have recently bought and sold shares of ETN. Cullen Investment Group LTD. increased its position in shares of Eaton by 2.3% during the 1st quarter. Cullen Investment Group LTD. now owns 72,215 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $22,730,000 after purchasing an additional 1,626 shares in the last quarter. Trust Co. of Toledo NA OH increased its position in shares of Eaton by 2.5% during the 1st quarter. Trust Co. of Toledo NA OH now owns 14,988 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $4,686,000 after purchasing an additional 371 shares in the last quarter. ST Germain D J Co. Inc. increased its position in shares of Eaton by 1.7% during the 1st quarter. ST Germain D J Co. Inc. now owns 30,211 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $9,446,000 after purchasing an additional 516 shares in the last quarter. Symmetry Partners LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Eaton during the 1st quarter worth about $3,150,000. Finally, Park National Corp OH increased its position in shares of Eaton by 2.9% during the 1st quarter. Park National Corp OH now owns 2,869 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $897,000 after purchasing an additional 82 shares in the last quarter. 82.97% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.