Hsbc Holdings PLC Sells 9,394 Shares of Eaton Co. plc (NYSE:ETN)

Hsbc Holdings PLC lessened its stake in shares of Eaton Co. plc (NYSE:ETN) by 3.2% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 281,242 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 9,394 shares during the quarter. Hsbc Holdings PLC owned about 0.07% of Eaton worth $93,494,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of ETN. Flagship Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Eaton in the 4th quarter worth approximately $27,000. Noble Wealth Management PBC purchased a new stake in shares of Eaton in the fourth quarter worth $30,000. Horizon Bancorp Inc. IN boosted its stake in Eaton by 321.7% during the fourth quarter. Horizon Bancorp Inc. IN now owns 97 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $32,000 after buying an additional 74 shares during the period. Morse Asset Management Inc purchased a new position in Eaton during the third quarter worth about $33,000. Finally, Murphy & Mullick Capital Management Corp bought a new position in Eaton in the 4th quarter worth about $33,000. 82.97% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Eaton Stock Performance

Eaton stock opened at $275.72 on Thursday. The company has a current ratio of 1.50, a quick ratio of 0.96 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.46. The firm has a market cap of $108.02 billion, a P/E ratio of 29.02, a P/E/G ratio of 2.64 and a beta of 1.09. Eaton Co. plc has a 1-year low of $231.85 and a 1-year high of $379.99. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $282.46 and a 200-day moving average of $323.96.

Eaton (NYSE:ETN) last posted its earnings results 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 quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $2.55 EPS. Sell-side analysts expect that Eaton Co. plc will post 12.02 EPS for the current year.

Eaton Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 23rd. Stockholders of record on Monday, May 5th will be paid a dividend of $1.04 per share. This represents a $4.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.51%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, May 5th. Eaton’s payout ratio is 43.79%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages have recently commented on ETN. Royal Bank of Canada cut their price objective on Eaton from $405.00 to $376.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, March 6th. Melius Research reissued a “hold” rating and issued a $373.00 price target on shares of Eaton in a report on Tuesday, January 28th. Jefferies Financial Group dropped their price objective on shares of Eaton from $390.00 to $335.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, March 12th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their target price on Eaton from $350.00 to $289.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, April 8th. Finally, Melius lowered Eaton from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and set a $373.00 price target for the company. in a research note on Tuesday, January 28th. Eight equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twelve have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Eaton presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $350.22.

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.