Fred Alger Management LLC Has $49.51 Million Stake in Eaton Co. plc (NYSE:ETN)

Fred Alger Management LLC lessened its position in shares of Eaton Co. plc (NYSE:ETN) by 0.6% in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 157,891 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 1,022 shares during the period. Fred Alger Management LLC’s holdings in Eaton were worth $49,507,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other large investors have also made changes to their positions in ETN. BRITISH COLUMBIA INVESTMENT MANAGEMENT Corp lifted its stake in Eaton by 60.1% during the second quarter. BRITISH COLUMBIA INVESTMENT MANAGEMENT Corp now owns 76,594 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $24,016,000 after purchasing an additional 28,760 shares during the last quarter. Gateway Advisory LLC acquired a new position in shares of Eaton during the 2nd quarter worth $615,000. Sagefield Capital LP raised its holdings in shares of Eaton by 288.9% during the 2nd quarter. Sagefield Capital LP now owns 13,358 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $4,188,000 after buying an additional 9,923 shares in the last quarter. Interval Partners LP lifted its position in shares of Eaton by 82.7% during the 2nd quarter. Interval Partners LP now owns 151,716 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $47,571,000 after buying an additional 68,693 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Marietta Investment Partners LLC boosted its stake in Eaton by 4.5% in the second quarter. Marietta Investment Partners LLC now owns 25,384 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $7,959,000 after buying an additional 1,103 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 82.97% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity at Eaton

In other news, insider Taras G. Jr. Szmagala sold 335 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, August 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $288.72, for a total value of $96,721.20. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 9,900 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,858,328. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. In other Eaton news, insider Taras G. Jr. Szmagala sold 335 shares of Eaton stock in a transaction on Monday, August 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $288.72, for a total transaction of $96,721.20. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 9,900 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,858,328. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, Director Karenann K. Terrell bought 500 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, August 21st. The stock was purchased at an average price of $298.97 per share, with a total value of $149,485.00. Following the acquisition, the director now owns 500 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $149,485. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 52,511 shares of company stock valued at $15,809,326. 0.53% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms have recently commented on ETN. Morgan Stanley began coverage on shares of Eaton in a report on Friday, September 6th. They issued an “overweight” rating and a $370.00 target price for the company. Citigroup started coverage on shares of Eaton in a research note on Monday, September 16th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $348.00 price objective for the company. Evercore ISI cut their target price on shares of Eaton from $357.00 to $333.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, August 19th. Barclays boosted their price objective on Eaton from $318.00 to $319.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Friday, August 2nd. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price target on shares of Eaton from $320.00 to $315.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, August 2nd. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fourteen have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $337.41.

Eaton Price Performance

Eaton stock opened at $327.39 on Wednesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.44, a quick ratio of 1.07 and a current ratio of 1.56. The stock has a market capitalization of $130.33 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 38.65, a PEG ratio of 2.53 and a beta of 1.01. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $299.89 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $313.12. Eaton Co. plc has a 52-week low of $191.82 and a 52-week high of $345.19.

Eaton (NYSE:ETN) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, August 1st. The industrial products company reported $2.73 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.61 by $0.12. Eaton had a return on equity of 21.45% and a net margin of 15.12%. The company had revenue of $6.35 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $6.35 billion. On average, equities analysts predict that Eaton Co. plc will post 10.75 earnings per share for the current year.

Eaton Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 23rd. Investors of record on Monday, August 5th were issued a $0.94 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, August 5th. This represents a $3.76 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.15%. Eaton’s dividend payout ratio is presently 44.39%.

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.