Shares of Eaton (ETN -0.53%) traded higher Friday afternoon following the release of the company's Q3 results. For the quarter, net sales notched an all-time record at $5.61 billion, or 42% above the $3.95 billion in the same period the previous year. Attributable net income also saw a sharp increase over that time span, to $510 million ($1.07 per diluted share), from Q3 2012's $345 million ($1.02). On an operating basis, those EPS figures were $1.12 and $1.07, respectively.
In the press release detailing the results, Eaton said the increases were "driven" by its acquisition of Cooper Industries.That purchase was announced in May 2012 and completed in November of that year.
Analysts had been expecting revenue of $5.7 billion and EPS of $1.12.
Eaton also provided selected forward guidance for its current Q4 and fiscal 2013. It quoted its CEO, Alexander Cutler, as saying of the quarter that "our sales are likely to be slightly lower than the third quarter, reflecting normal seasonality." The company believes it will post operating EPS of $1.00 to $1.10. For the full year, it anticipates operating EPS of $4.05 to $4.15. The latter figure is a reduction from its previous projection of $4.25.
Overall, investors seemed cheered by the results -- the company's stock closed the day up 4.6%, or $3.14, to $71.64.
