Eaton Corporation PLC Stock Buy Recommendation Reiterated (ETN)

Editor's Note: TheStreet ratings do not represent the views of TheStreet's staff or its contributors. Ratings are established by computer based on metrics for performance (which includes growth, stock performance, efficiency and valuation) and risk (volatility and solvency). Companies with poor cash flow or high debt levels tend to earn lower ratings in our model.

NEW YORK (TheStreet) -- Eaton Corporation (NYSE:ETN) has been reiterated by TheStreet Ratings as a buy with a ratings score of A- . The company's strengths can be seen in multiple areas, such as its revenue growth, solid stock price performance and largely solid financial position with reasonable debt levels by most measures. We feel these strengths outweigh the fact that the company has had sub par growth in net income.

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Highlights from the ratings report include:

• ETN's revenue growth has slightly outpaced the industry average of 1.2%. Since the same quarter one year prior, revenues slightly increased by 7.4%. This growth in revenue does not appear to have trickled down to the company's bottom line, displayed by a decline in earnings per share.
• Compared to where it was a year ago today, the stock is now trading at a higher level, regardless of the company's weak earnings results. Turning our attention to the future direction of the stock, it goes without saying that even the best stocks can fall in an overall down market. However, in any other environment, this stock still has good upside potential despite the fact that it has already risen in the past year.
• EATON CORP PLC has exprienced a steep decline in earnings per share in the most recent quarter in comparison to its performance from the same quarter a year ago. The company has suffered a declining pattern of earnings per share over the past year. However, we anticipate this trend reversing over the coming year. During the past fiscal year, EATON CORP PLC reported lower earnings of $3.51 versus $3.94 in the prior year. This year, the market expects an improvement in earnings ($4.36 versus $3.51).
• ETN's debt-to-equity ratio of 0.72 is somewhat low overall, but it is high when compared to the industry average, implying that the management of the debt levels should be evaluated further. Regardless of the somewhat mixed results with the debt-to-equity ratio, the company's quick ratio of 0.85 is weak.
• Return on equity has greatly decreased when compared to its ROE from the same quarter one year prior. This is a signal of major weakness within the corporation. When compared to other companies in the Electrical Equipment industry and the overall market, EATON CORP PLC's return on equity is below that of both the industry average and the S&P 500.

Eaton Corporation operates as a diversified power management company worldwide. Eaton has a market cap of $27.4 billion and is part of the industrial goods sector and industrial industry. The company has a P/E ratio of 14.9, below the S&P 500 P/E ratio of 17.7. Shares are up 8.7% year to date as of the close of trading on Friday.

You can view the full Eaton Ratings Report or get investment ideas from our investment research center.

--Written by a member of TheStreet Ratings Staff.

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