Capital Research Global Investors Increases Stock Holdings in Otis Worldwide Co. (NYSE:OTIS)

Capital Research Global Investors boosted its stake in Otis Worldwide Co. (NYSE:OTIS) by 0.1% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 2,784,371 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 3,803 shares during the quarter. Capital Research Global Investors owned about 0.70% of Otis Worldwide worth $257,861,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Aster Capital Management DIFC Ltd purchased a new position in Otis Worldwide in the fourth quarter valued at about $28,000. Fortitude Family Office LLC raised its position in shares of Otis Worldwide by 485.5% in the 4th quarter. Fortitude Family Office LLC now owns 322 shares of the company’s stock valued at $30,000 after purchasing an additional 267 shares in the last quarter. Centricity Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Otis Worldwide during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $33,000. Flagship Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Otis Worldwide during the fourth quarter worth approximately $34,000. Finally, Golden State Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Otis Worldwide in the fourth quarter worth $34,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 88.03% of the company’s stock.

Otis Worldwide Trading Up 1.8 %

Otis Worldwide stock opened at $98.53 on Friday. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $99.30 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $98.57. The stock has a market cap of $39.07 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 24.27 and a beta of 1.00. Otis Worldwide Co. has a 52 week low of $89.70 and a 52 week high of $106.83.

Otis Worldwide (NYSE:OTIS) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, January 29th. The company reported $0.93 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.95 by ($0.02). Otis Worldwide had a negative return on equity of 31.76% and a net margin of 11.53%. Research analysts expect that Otis Worldwide Co. will post 4.04 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Otis Worldwide declared that its board has approved a share repurchase program on Thursday, January 16th that permits the company to repurchase $2.00 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization permits the company to reacquire up to 5.4% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase programs are generally a sign that the company’s board believes its stock is undervalued.

Otis Worldwide Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 7th. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 14th were issued a $0.39 dividend. This represents a $1.56 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.58%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 14th. Otis Worldwide’s payout ratio is 38.42%.

Insider Activity

In other news, insider Montlivault Stephane De sold 6,660 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, March 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $105.30, for a total transaction of $701,298.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 63,931 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $6,731,934.30. This trade represents a 9.43 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, EVP Nora E. Lafreniere sold 1,700 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, February 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $95.91, for a total value of $163,047.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 24,927 shares in the company, valued at $2,390,748.57. This trade represents a 6.38 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders sold 112,281 shares of company stock worth $10,747,553. Corporate insiders own 0.23% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts have commented on OTIS shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price objective on shares of Otis Worldwide from $105.00 to $88.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, April 8th. Barclays lifted their target price on Otis Worldwide from $91.00 to $92.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 26th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price target on Otis Worldwide from $100.00 to $95.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, January 30th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, four have issued a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $100.88.

About Otis Worldwide

Otis Worldwide Corporation engages in manufacturing, installation, and servicing of elevators and escalators in the United States, China, and internationally. The company operates in two segments, New Equipment and Service. The New Equipment segment designs, manufactures, sells, and installs a range of passenger and freight elevators, as well as escalators and moving walkways for residential and commercial buildings, and infrastructure projects.