Scharf Investments LLC Takes Position in Eaton Co. plc (NYSE:ETN)

Scharf Investments LLC bought a new stake in shares of Eaton Co. plc (NYSE:ETN) in the first quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor bought 2,846 shares of the industrial products company’s stock, valued at approximately $890,000.

Other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Ritholtz Wealth Management lifted its position in shares of Eaton by 5.1% during the 4th quarter. Ritholtz Wealth Management now owns 5,724 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $1,379,000 after acquiring an additional 277 shares during the period. Pinnbrook Capital Management LP bought a new stake in shares of Eaton during the 4th quarter worth $15,109,000. Congress Wealth Management LLC DE boosted its stake in Eaton by 8.1% in the fourth quarter. Congress Wealth Management LLC DE now owns 76,731 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $18,479,000 after buying an additional 5,725 shares in the last quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. boosted its stake in Eaton by 30.5% in the fourth quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. now owns 34,071 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $8,205,000 after buying an additional 7,964 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Weiss Asset Management LP acquired a new stake in Eaton in the fourth quarter valued at about $1,001,000. 82.97% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Eaton Stock Down 0.4 %

Shares of NYSE:ETN traded down $1.33 during mid-day trading on Thursday, hitting $313.94. 2,525,075 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,024,264. The stock has a market cap of $125.51 billion, a P/E ratio of 36.89, a P/E/G ratio of 2.70 and a beta of 1.04. The company has a current ratio of 1.56, a quick ratio of 1.05 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.42. Eaton Co. plc has a 12-month low of $191.82 and a 12-month high of $345.19. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $325.05 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $291.63.

Eaton (NYSE:ETN) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, April 30th. The industrial products company reported $2.40 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.28 by $0.12. Eaton had a return on equity of 20.69% and a net margin of 14.38%. The company had revenue of $5.94 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $5.91 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $1.88 earnings per share. Eaton’s quarterly revenue was up 8.4% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Eaton Co. plc will post 10.56 earnings per share for the current year.

Eaton Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, May 24th. Shareholders of record on Monday, May 6th were paid a $0.94 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, May 3rd. This represents a $3.76 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.20%. Eaton’s payout ratio is presently 44.39%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Eaton

In other Eaton news, insider Peter Denk sold 2,416 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, May 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $331.84, for a total value of $801,725.44. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 5,086 shares in the company, valued at $1,687,738.24. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Corporate insiders own 0.53% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts recently weighed in on the company. HSBC raised their price objective on Eaton from $240.00 to $280.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, May 3rd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price objective on Eaton from $279.00 to $325.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 1st. Argus raised their price objective on Eaton from $290.00 to $350.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, May 2nd. Barclays raised Eaton from an “underweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and raised their price objective for the company from $250.00 to $300.00 in a research note on Tuesday, April 2nd. Finally, Wolfe Research reiterated an “underperform” rating and issued a $312.00 target price on shares of Eaton in a research report on Monday, April 8th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have issued a hold rating and twelve have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Eaton presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $314.27.

Eaton 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.