Otis Worldwide Co. (NYSE:OTIS) Raises Dividend to $0.42 Per Share

Otis Worldwide Co. (NYSE:OTIS) declared a quarterly dividend on Tuesday, April 22nd, RTT News reports. Investors of record on Friday, May 16th will be paid a dividend of 0.42 per share on Friday, June 6th. This represents a $1.68 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.73%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, May 16th. This is a 7.7% increase from Otis Worldwide’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.39.

Otis Worldwide has raised its dividend payment by an average of 18.0% per year over the last three years and has increased its dividend annually for the last 5 consecutive years. Otis Worldwide has a dividend payout ratio of 37.4% meaning its dividend is sufficiently covered by earnings. Analysts expect Otis Worldwide to earn $4.42 per share next year, which means the company should continue to be able to cover its $1.68 annual dividend with an expected future payout ratio of 38.0%.

Otis Worldwide Price Performance

OTIS stock opened at $97.04 on Wednesday. The firm has a market capitalization of $38.30 billion, a P/E ratio of 23.90 and a beta of 1.01. The business’s 50-day moving average is $98.34 and its two-hundred day moving average is $97.66. Otis Worldwide has a 1 year low of $89.70 and a 1 year high of $106.83.

Otis Worldwide (NYSE:OTIS) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 23rd. The company reported $0.92 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.91 by $0.01. Otis Worldwide had a negative return on equity of 31.76% and a net margin of 11.53%. The company had revenue of $3.35 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.41 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $0.88 EPS. Otis Worldwide’s revenue for the quarter was down 2.5% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, analysts expect that Otis Worldwide will post 4.04 EPS for the current year.

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

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research analysts have weighed in on the company. Barclays lowered their target price on Otis Worldwide from $92.00 to $90.00 and set an “underweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, April 25th. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price target on Otis Worldwide from $105.00 to $95.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, April 24th. Royal Bank of Canada reduced their price target on Otis Worldwide from $109.00 to $105.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Monday, April 28th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price target on Otis Worldwide from $105.00 to $88.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, April 8th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, four have given a hold rating and one has given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $98.86.

Insider Transactions at Otis Worldwide

In related news, insider Montlivault Stephane De sold 6,660 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, March 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $105.30, for a total value of $701,298.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 63,931 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,731,934.30. This represents a 9.43% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Insiders own 0.23% of the company’s stock.

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.