Stephens Inc. AR Reduces Stock Holdings in Otis Worldwide Co. (NYSE:OTIS)

Stephens Inc. AR lessened its holdings in shares of Otis Worldwide Co. (NYSE:OTIS) by 4.5% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 4,725 shares of the company’s stock after selling 225 shares during the period. Stephens Inc. AR’s holdings in Otis Worldwide were worth $438,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in OTIS. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted its holdings in Otis Worldwide by 41.0% during the third quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 28,076,031 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,918,223,000 after buying an additional 8,161,946 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its position in shares of Otis Worldwide by 1.4% during the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 11,031,700 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,146,045,000 after acquiring an additional 152,072 shares during the period. Franklin Resources Inc. raised its holdings in Otis Worldwide by 58.3% in the 3rd quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 7,349,744 shares of the company’s stock worth $774,863,000 after purchasing an additional 2,706,871 shares during the period. Sarasin & Partners LLP boosted its position in Otis Worldwide by 6.0% during the fourth quarter. Sarasin & Partners LLP now owns 4,053,315 shares of the company’s stock worth $375,378,000 after purchasing an additional 229,523 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Wellington Management Group LLP grew its holdings in Otis Worldwide by 11.9% in the third quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 3,680,452 shares of the company’s stock valued at $382,546,000 after purchasing an additional 391,206 shares during the period. 88.03% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Otis Worldwide Stock Down 1.3 %

NYSE OTIS opened at $96.77 on Friday. Otis Worldwide Co. has a 52 week low of $90.12 and a 52 week high of $106.33. The business’s fifty day simple moving average is $94.77 and its 200-day simple moving average is $97.14. The firm has a market cap of $38.37 billion, a PE ratio of 23.83 and a beta of 1.06.

Otis Worldwide (NYSE:OTIS) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, January 29th. The company reported $0.93 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.95 by ($0.02). Otis Worldwide had a net margin of 11.53% and a negative return on equity of 31.76%. Research analysts expect that Otis Worldwide Co. will post 4.03 EPS for the current year.

Otis Worldwide declared that its Board of Directors has approved a share buyback program on Thursday, January 16th that authorizes the company to buyback $2.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the company to purchase up to 5.4% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are typically an indication that the company’s board believes its stock is undervalued.

Otis Worldwide Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 7th. Investors of record on Friday, February 14th will be given a dividend of $0.39 per share. This represents a $1.56 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.61%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, February 14th. Otis Worldwide’s payout ratio is 38.42%.

Insider Activity at Otis Worldwide

In other news, EVP Nora E. Lafreniere sold 1,700 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $95.91, for a total value of $163,047.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 24,927 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,390,748.57. This trade represents a 6.38 % 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. Also, EVP Peiming Zheng sold 32,694 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, January 31st. The stock was sold at an average price of $95.43, for a total transaction of $3,119,988.42. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 169 shares in the company, valued at approximately $16,127.67. The trade was a 99.49 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders have sold 105,621 shares of company stock worth $10,046,255. Company insiders own 0.23% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms recently issued reports on OTIS. Barclays dropped their price target on shares of Otis Worldwide from $94.00 to $91.00 and set an “underweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, January 8th. UBS Group began coverage on shares of Otis Worldwide in a research report on Wednesday, November 13th. They set a “neutral” rating and a $113.00 price target for the company. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their price objective on Otis Worldwide from $100.00 to $95.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, January 30th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their target price on Otis Worldwide from $108.00 to $105.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, January 30th. Finally, Wolfe Research cut Otis Worldwide from a “peer perform” rating to an “underperform” rating and set a $104.00 price target for the company. in a research report on Thursday, December 12th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, five have issued a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $102.88.

Otis Worldwide Company Profile

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.