Baillie Gifford & Co. Sells 461,438 Shares of Eaton Co. plc (NYSE:ETN)

Baillie Gifford & Co. trimmed its stake in Eaton Co. plc (NYSE:ETN) by 36.6% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 797,982 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 461,438 shares during the period. Baillie Gifford & Co. owned 0.20% of Eaton worth $264,826,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Horizon Bancorp Inc. IN raised its stake in shares of Eaton by 321.7% in the 4th quarter. Horizon Bancorp Inc. IN now owns 97 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $32,000 after acquiring an additional 74 shares in the last quarter. Morse Asset Management Inc acquired a new stake in Eaton in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $33,000. Activest Wealth Management grew its holdings in Eaton by 621.4% in the 4th quarter. Activest Wealth Management now owns 101 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $34,000 after buying an additional 87 shares during the last quarter. DT Investment Partners LLC acquired a new stake in Eaton in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $37,000. Finally, Hager Investment Management Services LLC acquired a new stake in Eaton in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $38,000. 82.97% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research firms have issued reports on ETN. Mizuho raised their target price on Eaton from $365.00 to $385.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, November 1st. UBS Group began coverage on Eaton in a report on Wednesday, November 13th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $431.00 target price on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their target price on Eaton from $350.00 to $335.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, February 3rd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price objective on Eaton from $350.00 to $348.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, January 15th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group lifted their price objective on Eaton from $400.00 to $440.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, December 6th. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and thirteen have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $369.20.

Insider Buying and Selling at Eaton

In other Eaton news, Director Gregory R. Page sold 10,000 shares of Eaton stock in a transaction on Friday, December 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $355.98, for a total value of $3,559,800.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 43,203 shares in the company, valued at approximately $15,379,403.94. The trade was a 18.80 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, insider Ernest W. Marshall, Jr. sold 1,412 shares of Eaton stock in a transaction on Monday, November 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $378.58, for a total value of $534,554.96. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 31,200 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $11,811,696. The trade was a 4.33 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 0.53% of the company’s stock.

Eaton Price Performance

Eaton stock opened at $309.21 on Monday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.46, a current ratio of 1.50 and a quick ratio of 0.96. The company has a market capitalization of $122.20 billion, a PE ratio of 32.55, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.37 and a beta of 1.05. Eaton Co. plc has a one year low of $255.65 and a one year high of $379.99. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $337.21 and a 200 day simple moving average of $331.70.

Eaton (NYSE:ETN) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Friday, January 31st. The industrial products company reported $2.83 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.82 by $0.01. Eaton had a return on equity of 22.62% and a net margin of 15.25%. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $2.55 earnings per share. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that Eaton Co. plc will post 12.04 EPS for the current fiscal year.

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.