Kentucky Retirement Systems Decreases Stake in Johnson Controls International plc (NYSE:JCI)

Kentucky Retirement Systems reduced its position in Johnson Controls International plc (NYSE:JCI) by 1.9% during the second quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 50,766 shares of the company’s stock after selling 989 shares during the period. Kentucky Retirement Systems’ holdings in Johnson Controls International were worth $3,374,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Rise Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Johnson Controls International in the first quarter worth about $25,000. Continuum Advisory LLC increased its stake in Johnson Controls International by 65.2% during the second quarter. Continuum Advisory LLC now owns 527 shares of the company’s stock worth $35,000 after acquiring an additional 208 shares during the last quarter. Hexagon Capital Partners LLC increased its stake in Johnson Controls International by 39.7% during the second quarter. Hexagon Capital Partners LLC now owns 711 shares of the company’s stock worth $47,000 after acquiring an additional 202 shares during the last quarter. Friedenthal Financial bought a new stake in Johnson Controls International during the second quarter worth approximately $47,000. Finally, Centerpoint Advisors LLC increased its stake in Johnson Controls International by 126.8% during the first quarter. Centerpoint Advisors LLC now owns 737 shares of the company’s stock worth $48,000 after acquiring an additional 412 shares during the last quarter. 90.05% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Johnson Controls International Trading Up 2.0 %

JCI opened at $74.23 on Friday. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $69.87 and its two-hundred day moving average is $67.64. The company has a market capitalization of $49.59 billion, a P/E ratio of 30.05, a PEG ratio of 1.91 and a beta of 1.29. Johnson Controls International plc has a 52 week low of $47.90 and a 52 week high of $75.36. The company has a quick ratio of 0.73, a current ratio of 0.96 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.46.

Johnson Controls International (NYSE:JCI) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 31st. The company reported $1.14 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.08 by $0.06. The company had revenue of $7.23 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $7.53 billion. Johnson Controls International had a return on equity of 13.64% and a net margin of 6.02%. Johnson Controls International’s quarterly revenue was up 1.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the business posted $1.03 EPS. Analysts forecast that Johnson Controls International plc will post 3.67 earnings per share for the current year.

Johnson Controls International Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, October 18th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, September 25th will be issued a dividend of $0.37 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, September 25th. This represents a $1.48 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.99%. Johnson Controls International’s payout ratio is currently 59.92%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several brokerages have weighed in on JCI. Royal Bank of Canada raised Johnson Controls International from an “underperform” rating to a “sector perform” rating and boosted their price objective for the stock from $61.00 to $69.00 in a research note on Wednesday, August 14th. Barclays reduced their price objective on Johnson Controls International from $62.00 to $61.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, July 10th. Robert W. Baird boosted their price objective on Johnson Controls International from $72.00 to $78.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, August 1st. Morgan Stanley began coverage on Johnson Controls International in a research note on Friday, September 6th. They set an “overweight” rating and a $85.00 price objective on the stock. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group upped their target price on Johnson Controls International from $73.00 to $81.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, August 2nd. Eleven investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $70.21.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Johnson Controls International news, COO Nathan D. Manning sold 1,167 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, August 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $70.71, for a total transaction of $82,518.57. Following the transaction, the chief operating officer now directly owns 103,866 shares in the company, valued at approximately $7,344,364.86. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. In other Johnson Controls International news, COO Nathan D. Manning sold 1,167 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, August 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $70.71, for a total transaction of $82,518.57. Following the sale, the chief operating officer now owns 103,866 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $7,344,364.86. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, CEO George Oliver sold 110,615 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, September 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $72.67, for a total value of $8,038,392.05. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 1,243,751 shares in the company, valued at approximately $90,383,385.17. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 114,860 shares of company stock worth $8,333,834 in the last ninety days. 0.69% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

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.