Johnson Controls International Target of Unusually Large Options Trading (NYSE:JCI)

Johnson Controls International plc (NYSE:JCI) was the recipient of unusually large options trading activity on Wednesday. Stock investors bought 19,207 call options on the company. This represents an increase of approximately 1,963% compared to the typical volume of 931 call options.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CEO George Oliver sold 110,615 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, October 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $76.79, for a total value of $8,494,125.85. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 1,243,751 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $95,507,639.29. This trade represents a 8.17 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, EVP Marlon Sullivan sold 7,230 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, December 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $83.35, for a total transaction of $602,620.50. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 32,246 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,687,704.10. This trade represents a 18.31 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 761,774 shares of company stock worth $62,726,419. Corporate insiders own 0.69% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Johnson Controls International

A number of hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in JCI. Fortitude Family Office LLC grew its stake in shares of Johnson Controls International by 195.8% during the 3rd quarter. Fortitude Family Office LLC now owns 420 shares of the company’s stock valued at $33,000 after buying an additional 278 shares during the period. Wolff Wiese Magana LLC grew its position in Johnson Controls International by 977.3% during the third quarter. Wolff Wiese Magana LLC now owns 474 shares of the company’s stock valued at $37,000 after acquiring an additional 430 shares during the period. Western Pacific Wealth Management LP acquired a new stake in Johnson Controls International during the third quarter worth about $44,000. Larson Financial Group LLC increased its stake in Johnson Controls International by 169.3% during the third quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 738 shares of the company’s stock worth $57,000 after acquiring an additional 464 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Ashton Thomas Securities LLC purchased a new position in shares of Johnson Controls International in the 3rd quarter worth about $61,000. 90.05% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts have recently commented on JCI shares. UBS Group started coverage on Johnson Controls International in a research note on Wednesday, November 13th. They set a “neutral” rating and a $90.00 price target on the stock. Robert W. Baird upped their target price on Johnson Controls International from $80.00 to $85.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, November 7th. Royal Bank of Canada lifted their price target on Johnson Controls International from $81.00 to $86.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research note on Thursday, November 7th. Morgan Stanley started coverage on shares of Johnson Controls International in a research note on Friday, September 6th. They issued an “overweight” rating and a $85.00 price objective on the stock. Finally, Argus upgraded shares of Johnson Controls International from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $88.00 target price for the company in a research report on Friday, December 20th. Ten investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $80.93.

Johnson Controls International Trading Up 0.8 %

Shares of JCI opened at $80.99 on Thursday. Johnson Controls International has a fifty-two week low of $51.71 and a fifty-two week high of $87.16. The company has a market capitalization of $53.63 billion, a PE ratio of 31.89, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.31 and a beta of 1.31. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $81.14 and a two-hundred day moving average of $74.38. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.46, a quick ratio of 0.79 and a current ratio of 0.94.

Johnson Controls International Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, January 17th. Investors of record on Monday, December 23rd will be given a dividend of $0.37 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, December 23rd. This represents a $1.48 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.83%. Johnson Controls International’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 58.27%.

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.