Eaton (NYSE:ETN) Price Target Raised to $325.00

Eaton (NYSE:ETN) had its price target hoisted by JPMorgan Chase & Co. from $279.00 to $325.00 in a research report sent to investors on Wednesday morning, Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has an overweight rating on the industrial products company’s stock.

ETN has been the subject of a number of other reports. UBS Group increased their price objective on Eaton from $255.00 to $305.00 and gave the stock a buy rating in a report on Friday, February 2nd. Citigroup raised their price target on Eaton from $270.00 to $310.00 and gave the company a buy rating in a report on Friday, February 2nd. Evercore ISI lifted their price objective on shares of Eaton from $262.00 to $308.00 and gave the company an outperform rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 20th. Bank of America increased their target price on shares of Eaton from $320.00 to $330.00 and gave the company a buy rating in a research report on Monday, March 18th. Finally, Mizuho restated a buy rating and set a $355.00 price target (up from $340.00) on shares of Eaton in a research report on Wednesday. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have assigned a hold rating and twelve have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of Moderate Buy and an average price target of $314.27.

Eaton Trading Up 2.0 %

NYSE:ETN opened at $320.50 on Wednesday. Eaton has a 12-month low of $165.24 and a 12-month high of $333.05. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.42, a current ratio of 1.56 and a quick ratio of 1.02. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $307.97 and a 200 day simple moving average of $261.18. The firm has a market capitalization of $128.14 billion, a P/E ratio of 37.84, a P/E/G ratio of 2.49 and a beta of 1.06.

Eaton (NYSE:ETN) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 30th. The industrial products company reported $2.40 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.28 by $0.12. The business had revenue of $5.94 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.91 billion. Eaton had a net margin of 14.38% and a return on equity of 20.69%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 8.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $1.88 earnings per share. Equities research analysts predict that Eaton will post 10.45 EPS for the current year.

Eaton Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 24th. Stockholders of record on Monday, May 6th will be issued a dividend of $0.94 per share. This represents a $3.76 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.17%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, May 3rd. Eaton’s dividend payout ratio is 44.39%.

Insider Activity at Eaton

In other Eaton news, 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 completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 69,472 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $20,244,140.80. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. In other news, insider Ernest W. Marshall, Jr. sold 19,750 shares of Eaton stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 7th. The stock was 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 in the company, valued at $8,116,427.04. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, insider Heath B. Monesmith sold 13,027 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $291.40, for a total value 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 $20,244,140.80. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 38,969 shares of company stock worth $10,904,774 in the last quarter. 0.53% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Eaton

A number of large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. LifeSteps Financial Inc. acquired a new position in Eaton in the 1st quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Atwood & Palmer Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Eaton by 142.9% during the 1st quarter. Atwood & Palmer Inc. now owns 85 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $27,000 after acquiring an additional 50 shares in the last quarter. Tennessee Valley Asset Management Partners acquired a new position in shares of Eaton in the fourth quarter worth $25,000. Redmont Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Eaton during the first quarter worth $33,000. Finally, Clear Investment Research LLC acquired a new stake in Eaton during the fourth quarter valued at $29,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 82.97% of the company’s stock.

Eaton Company 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.