Eaton (NYSE:ETN) Downgraded by Evercore ISI to “Inline”

Evercore ISI downgraded shares of Eaton (NYSE:ETN) from an outperform rating to an inline rating in a report published on Wednesday morning, Marketbeat Ratings reports. The firm currently has $389.00 price objective on the industrial products company’s stock, up from their prior price objective of $333.00.

A number of other research firms have also recently commented on ETN. Morgan Stanley started coverage on shares of Eaton in a report on Friday, September 6th. They issued an “overweight” rating and a $370.00 price target on the stock. Wolfe Research upgraded shares of Eaton from an “underperform” rating to a “peer perform” rating in a report on Friday, September 6th. Citigroup initiated coverage on shares of Eaton in a report on Monday, September 16th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $348.00 price target on the stock. Raymond James decreased their price objective on shares of Eaton from $375.00 to $365.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, September 9th. Finally, Mizuho increased their price objective on shares of Eaton from $365.00 to $385.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, November 1st. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and thirteen have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $357.83.

Eaton Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:ETN opened at $358.99 on Wednesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.45, a quick ratio of 1.00 and a current ratio of 1.53. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $335.82 and a 200 day moving average price of $321.35. Eaton has a fifty-two week low of $224.52 and a fifty-two week high of $373.49. The firm has a market cap of $141.87 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 38.19, a P/E/G ratio of 2.96 and a beta of 1.01.

Eaton (NYSE:ETN) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, October 31st. The industrial products company reported $2.84 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.80 by $0.04. The company had revenue of $6.35 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.37 billion. Eaton had a net margin of 15.32% and a return on equity of 21.97%. Eaton’s revenue was up 7.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $2.47 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that Eaton will post 10.79 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Eaton Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 22nd. Investors of record on Monday, November 4th will be paid a $0.94 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, November 4th. This represents a $3.76 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.05%. Eaton’s dividend payout ratio is currently 40.00%.

Insider Activity at Eaton

In other Eaton news, insider Michael Yelton sold 3,136 shares of Eaton stock in a transaction on Thursday, August 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $303.12, for a total transaction of $950,584.32. Following the sale, the insider now owns 3,914 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,186,411.68. The trade was a 44.48 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, insider Craig Arnold sold 61,569 shares of Eaton stock in a transaction on 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 approximately $182,780,769.20. This trade represents a 10.84 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 68,705 shares of company stock valued at $24,516,346. 0.53% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Geode Capital Management LLC raised its holdings in Eaton by 0.7% in the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 8,069,341 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $2,665,342,000 after buying an additional 56,516 shares during the period. Legal & General Group Plc lifted its position in shares of Eaton by 0.6% during the second quarter. Legal & General Group Plc now owns 3,206,251 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $1,005,317,000 after purchasing an additional 18,077 shares in the last quarter. Capital World Investors lifted its position in shares of Eaton by 323.8% during the first quarter. Capital World Investors now owns 3,192,576 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $998,255,000 after purchasing an additional 2,439,270 shares in the last quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC lifted its position in shares of Eaton by 32.8% during the third quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC now owns 2,419,200 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $801,798,000 after purchasing an additional 597,700 shares in the last quarter. Finally, UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC increased its stake in shares of Eaton by 253.2% during the third quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 2,273,685 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $753,590,000 after buying an additional 1,629,856 shares during the period. 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.