Johnson Controls International Target of Unusually Large Options Trading (NYSE:JCI)

Johnson Controls International plc (NYSE:JCI) was the recipient of some unusual options trading on Wednesday. Investors bought 19,207 call options on the company. This is an increase of approximately 1,963% compared to the average daily volume of 931 call options.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms have weighed in on JCI. Melius cut Johnson Controls International from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and set a $95.00 price target on the stock. in a report on Tuesday, January 28th. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their target price on Johnson Controls International from $92.00 to $98.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 6th. Argus upgraded shares of Johnson Controls International from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $88.00 price objective for the company in a report on Friday, December 20th. UBS Group raised shares of Johnson Controls International from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and increased their target price for the company from $90.00 to $103.00 in a report on Monday, February 10th. Finally, Morgan Stanley boosted their price objective on Johnson Controls International from $95.00 to $105.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 6th. Eight investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $90.07.

Insider Buying and Selling at Johnson Controls International

In related news, VP Nathan D. Manning sold 1,421 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $76.44, for a total transaction of $108,621.24. Following the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 148,346 shares in the company, valued at approximately $11,339,568.24. The trade was a 0.95 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, CEO George Oliver sold 162,894 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Friday, February 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $89.28, for a total value of $14,543,176.32. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 1,203,893 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $107,483,567.04. This trade represents a 11.92 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 907,286 shares of company stock valued at $77,938,071. Company insiders own 0.54% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Johnson Controls International

Large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Barclays PLC increased its position in shares of Johnson Controls International by 6.7% during the third quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 1,685,322 shares of the company’s stock valued at $130,797,000 after acquiring an additional 105,194 shares during the last quarter. World Investment Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Johnson Controls International in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $5,361,000. Sfmg LLC purchased a new stake in Johnson Controls International in the third quarter valued at approximately $210,000. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB raised its position in Johnson Controls International by 27.6% in the third quarter. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB now owns 223,989 shares of the company’s stock valued at $17,384,000 after purchasing an additional 48,416 shares during the period. Finally, Peapack Gladstone Financial Corp lifted its stake in Johnson Controls International by 8.6% during the third quarter. Peapack Gladstone Financial Corp now owns 9,669 shares of the company’s stock worth $751,000 after purchasing an additional 763 shares in the last quarter. 90.05% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Johnson Controls International Price Performance

Shares of NYSE JCI opened at $76.70 on Thursday. Johnson Controls International has a 52 week low of $59.83 and a 52 week high of $91.14. The business’s 50 day moving average price is $81.78 and its 200 day moving average price is $80.78. The company has a quick ratio of 0.86, a current ratio of 1.02 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.50. The firm has a market cap of $50.63 billion, a P/E ratio of 29.27, a P/E/G ratio of 1.96 and a beta of 1.22.

Johnson Controls International (NYSE:JCI) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, February 5th. The company reported $0.64 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.59 by $0.05. Johnson Controls International had a return on equity of 15.11% and a net margin of 6.83%. On average, sell-side analysts expect that Johnson Controls International will post 3.64 earnings per share for the current year.

Johnson Controls International Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, April 17th. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 24th will be given a $0.37 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 24th. This represents a $1.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.93%. Johnson Controls International’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 56.49%.

About Johnson Controls International

Johnson Controls International plc, together with its subsidiaries, engages in engineering, manufacturing, commissioning, and retrofitting building products and systems in the United States, Europe, the Asia Pacific, and internationally. It operates in four segments: Building Solutions North America, Building Solutions EMEA/LA, Building Solutions Asia Pacific, and Global Products.