The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company Decreases Stock Holdings in Emerson Electric Co. (NYSE:EMR)

The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company cut its stake in Emerson Electric Co. (NYSE:EMR) by 11.5% in the third quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The institutional investor owned 669,591 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after selling 87,185 shares during the quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company’s holdings in Emerson Electric were worth $73,233,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Newport Trust Company LLC acquired a new position in Emerson Electric during the second quarter worth $574,908,000. Legal & General Group Plc raised its stake in shares of Emerson Electric by 5.2% during the 2nd quarter. Legal & General Group Plc now owns 4,510,496 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $496,877,000 after buying an additional 224,784 shares during the last quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp boosted its position in shares of Emerson Electric by 107.2% in the 3rd quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 3,896,889 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $422,852,000 after buying an additional 2,016,075 shares in the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. increased its holdings in Emerson Electric by 0.7% during the 3rd quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 3,287,326 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $359,535,000 after acquiring an additional 23,739 shares in the last quarter. Finally, DekaBank Deutsche Girozentrale raised its position in Emerson Electric by 3.3% during the third quarter. DekaBank Deutsche Girozentrale now owns 2,738,701 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $297,653,000 after acquiring an additional 88,294 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 74.30% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. Royal Bank of Canada dropped their price objective on shares of Emerson Electric from $139.00 to $138.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, November 6th. Stephens cut Emerson Electric from an “overweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and cut their price target for the stock from $135.00 to $120.00 in a report on Wednesday, October 16th. Morgan Stanley started coverage on Emerson Electric in a research note on Friday, September 6th. They set an “underweight” rating and a $105.00 price objective on the stock. Barclays upped their target price on shares of Emerson Electric from $103.00 to $116.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Wednesday, November 6th. Finally, Oppenheimer lifted their price target on shares of Emerson Electric from $120.00 to $125.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, September 26th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have given a hold rating and thirteen have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $130.00.

Insider Activity at Emerson Electric

In other news, SVP Michael H. Train sold 21,525 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, November 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $125.96, for a total value of $2,711,289.00. Following the completion of the sale, the senior vice president now owns 262,408 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $33,052,911.68. This represents a 7.58 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. 0.25% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Emerson Electric Stock Down 0.3 %

EMR opened at $132.62 on Thursday. The company has a market cap of $75.62 billion, a PE ratio of 38.78, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.23 and a beta of 1.30. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.26, a quick ratio of 1.40 and a current ratio of 1.77. Emerson Electric Co. has a 1 year low of $87.55 and a 1 year high of $134.17. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $115.79 and a 200 day moving average price of $111.15.

Emerson Electric Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 10th. Investors of record on Friday, November 15th will be issued a dividend of $0.5275 per share. This is a positive change from Emerson Electric’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.53. The ex-dividend date is Friday, November 15th. This represents a $2.11 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.59%. Emerson Electric’s payout ratio is presently 61.70%.

Emerson Electric Company Profile

Emerson Electric Co, a technology and software company, provides various solutions for customers in industrial, commercial, and consumer markets in the Americas, Asia, the Middle East, Africa, and Europe. It operates in six segments: Final Control, Control Systems & Software, Measurement & Analytical, AspenTech, Discrete Automation, and Safety & Productivity.