First Financial Bankshares Inc Buys 1,695 Shares of Eaton Co. plc (NYSE:ETN)

First Financial Bankshares Inc lifted its stake in shares of Eaton Co. plc (NYSE:ETN) by 0.8% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 212,652 shares of the industrial products company’s stock after purchasing an additional 1,695 shares during the quarter. Eaton accounts for about 1.5% of First Financial Bankshares Inc’s portfolio, making the stock its 19th largest position. First Financial Bankshares Inc’s holdings in Eaton were worth $70,573,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of Eaton by 0.7% during the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 8,069,341 shares of the industrial products company’s stock valued at $2,665,342,000 after purchasing an additional 56,516 shares during the last quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. grew its holdings in Eaton by 15.1% during the 3rd quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 2,421,626 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $836,938,000 after acquiring an additional 316,830 shares during the last quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC grew its holdings in Eaton by 32.8% during the 3rd quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC now owns 2,419,200 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $801,798,000 after acquiring an additional 597,700 shares during the last quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC grew its holdings in Eaton by 253.2% during the 3rd quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 2,273,685 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $753,590,000 after acquiring an additional 1,629,856 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. grew its holdings in Eaton by 1.7% during the 4th quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 2,255,566 shares of the industrial products company’s stock worth $748,555,000 after acquiring an additional 37,138 shares during the last quarter. 82.97% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

ETN has been the topic of a number of research reports. Jefferies Financial Group reduced their target price on shares of Eaton from $390.00 to $335.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, March 12th. Barclays reduced their target price on shares of Eaton from $353.00 to $325.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, March 3rd. Melius Research reissued a “hold” rating and set a $373.00 target price on shares of Eaton in a report on Tuesday, January 28th. Citigroup dropped their price target on shares of Eaton from $440.00 to $410.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, January 13th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their price target on shares of Eaton from $350.00 to $348.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, January 15th. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twelve have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Eaton currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $357.68.

Eaton Stock Performance

NYSE ETN opened at $290.59 on Wednesday. Eaton Co. plc has a 1 year low of $255.65 and a 1 year high of $379.99. 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 firm has a market cap of $113.91 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 30.59, a PEG ratio of 2.64 and a beta of 1.09. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $314.23 and a 200-day moving average price of $331.66.

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, topping the consensus estimate of $2.82 by $0.01. Eaton had a net margin of 15.25% and a return on equity of 22.62%. During the same period last year, the business posted $2.55 earnings per share. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Eaton Co. plc will post 12.02 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Eaton Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 28th. Investors of record on Monday, March 10th will be given a dividend of $1.04 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 10th. This represents a $4.16 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.43%. This is a positive change from Eaton’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.94. Eaton’s dividend payout ratio is presently 43.79%.

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.