Investors Buy Large Volume of Call Options on Johnson Controls International (NYSE:JCI)

Johnson Controls International plc (NYSE:JCI) saw unusually large options trading activity on Wednesday. Investors bought 19,207 call options on the stock. This is an increase of 1,963% compared to the average volume of 931 call options.

Insider Transactions at Johnson Controls International

In other Johnson Controls International news, VP Nathan D. Manning sold 1,421 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $76.44, for a total value of $108,621.24. Following the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 148,346 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $11,339,568.24. This trade represents a 0.95 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, CEO George Oliver sold 205,168 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $88.03, for a total transaction of $18,060,939.04. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 1,260,527 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $110,964,191.81. This trade represents a 14.00 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 906,050 shares of company stock valued at $77,839,329. 0.54% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Compass Financial Services Inc bought a new position in shares of Johnson Controls International during the 4th quarter worth about $26,000. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. acquired a new position in Johnson Controls International during the 4th quarter worth approximately $29,000. Crowley Wealth Management Inc. bought a new position in Johnson Controls International in the fourth quarter worth approximately $42,000. Synergy Asset Management LLC acquired a new stake in Johnson Controls International in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $42,000. Finally, ST Germain D J Co. Inc. grew its stake in Johnson Controls International by 32.8% in the fourth quarter. ST Germain D J Co. Inc. now owns 543 shares of the company’s stock valued at $43,000 after acquiring an additional 134 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 90.05% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several brokerages recently weighed in on JCI. Barclays reduced their price objective on Johnson Controls International from $88.00 to $85.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, March 10th. Morgan Stanley lifted their price target on shares of Johnson Controls International from $95.00 to $105.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, February 6th. Royal Bank of Canada increased their price objective on shares of Johnson Controls International from $86.00 to $93.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 6th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price objective on Johnson Controls International from $87.00 to $100.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 6th. Finally, Melius Research reiterated a “hold” rating and issued a $95.00 target price on shares of Johnson Controls International in a research report on Tuesday, January 28th. Eight investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $91.27.

Johnson Controls International Trading Up 1.6 %

NYSE:JCI opened at $82.91 on Thursday. Johnson Controls International has a 52 week low of $59.83 and a 52 week high of $91.14. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.50, a quick ratio of 0.86 and a current ratio of 1.02. The firm’s fifty day moving average is $82.56 and its 200-day moving average is $79.95. The firm has a market cap of $54.73 billion, a P/E ratio of 31.64, a P/E/G ratio of 1.96 and a beta of 1.32.

Johnson Controls International (NYSE:JCI) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 5th. The company reported $0.64 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating 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%. Equities analysts expect that Johnson Controls International will post 3.64 earnings per share for the current year.

Johnson Controls International Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, April 17th. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 24th will be paid a $0.37 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 24th. This represents a $1.48 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.79%. Johnson Controls International’s dividend payout ratio is currently 56.49%.

Johnson Controls International Company Profile

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.