Royal London Asset Management Ltd. Decreases Stake in Johnson Controls International plc $JCI

Royal London Asset Management Ltd. cut its holdings in shares of Johnson Controls International plc (NYSE:JCI) by 2.1% during the second quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund owned 303,820 shares of the company’s stock after selling 6,430 shares during the period. Royal London Asset Management Ltd.’s holdings in Johnson Controls International were worth $44,391,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of JCI. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in Johnson Controls International in the 4th quarter valued at about $927,739,000. Viking Global Investors LP lifted its stake in Johnson Controls International by 368.5% in the 3rd quarter. Viking Global Investors LP now owns 6,796,942 shares of the company’s stock worth $747,324,000 after purchasing an additional 5,346,130 shares in the last quarter. Amundi boosted its holdings in shares of Johnson Controls International by 157.2% during the 1st quarter. Amundi now owns 5,965,212 shares of the company’s stock worth $781,145,000 after purchasing an additional 3,646,047 shares during the last quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Johnson Controls International by 140.8% during the 2nd quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 4,575,414 shares of the company’s stock worth $483,281,000 after purchasing an additional 2,675,157 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Invesco Ltd. grew its position in shares of Johnson Controls International by 13.0% in the fourth quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 16,003,486 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,916,417,000 after purchasing an additional 1,837,220 shares in the last quarter. 90.05% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts recently commented on JCI shares. Barclays increased their price target on Johnson Controls International from $136.00 to $144.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Thursday, May 7th. Argus set a $175.00 price objective on Johnson Controls International in a research note on Friday, August 7th. Wolfe Research restated an “outperform” rating and issued a $171.00 target price on shares of Johnson Controls International in a report on Wednesday, June 3rd. Zacks Research downgraded Johnson Controls International from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, August 6th. Finally, Morgan Stanley lifted their price target on Johnson Controls International from $140.00 to $175.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, June 9th. Twelve research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, ten have issued a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $155.50.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Johnson Controls International news, VP Lei Zhang Schlitz sold 23,417 shares of Johnson Controls International stock in a transaction on Tuesday, August 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $153.07, for a total value of $3,584,440.19. Following the sale, the vice president owned 15,017 shares in the company, valued at $2,298,652.19. The trade was a 60.93% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, VP Todd M. Grabowski sold 1,800 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, June 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $146.20, for a total value of $263,160.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president directly owned 26,215 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,832,633. This trade represents a 6.43% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. 0.29% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Johnson Controls International Stock Performance

Johnson Controls International stock opened at $139.33 on Friday. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $144.93 and a 200-day simple moving average of $141.23. The stock has a market cap of $84.40 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 24.23, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.34 and a beta of 1.31. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.61, a current ratio of 1.00 and a quick ratio of 0.83. Johnson Controls International plc has a 1-year low of $103.82 and a 1-year high of $157.06.

Johnson Controls International (NYSE:JCI) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 30th. The company reported $1.42 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.30 by $0.12. Johnson Controls International had a net margin of 14.32% and a return on equity of 22.11%. The firm had revenue of $6.61 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.46 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $1.05 EPS. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 9.3% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, analysts expect that Johnson Controls International plc will post 5.08 EPS for the current year.

Johnson Controls International Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, July 10th. Shareholders of record on Monday, June 15th were paid a dividend of $0.40 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, June 15th. This represents a $1.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.1%. Johnson Controls International’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 27.83%.

Johnson Controls International Company Profile

Johnson Controls International plc is a global diversified technology and multi‑industrial company that develops products, services and solutions for buildings and energy storage. The company’s core focus is on improving building efficiency, safety and sustainability through a combination of HVAC equipment, building controls and automation, fire and security systems, and related services. Johnson Controls traces its roots to 1885, when inventor Warren S. Johnson developed an electric room thermostat; over its long history the company has expanded from controls into a broad set of building‑related technologies and, through corporate transactions, into a global provider of integrated building solutions.

Johnson Controls’ product and service portfolio includes heating, ventilation and air‑conditioning equipment, chillers, air handlers and related mechanical systems, together with building automation and control platforms that monitor and manage energy use, indoor environmental quality and security.