AQR Capital Management LLC Raises Holdings in Johnson Controls International plc (NYSE:JCI)

AQR Capital Management LLC increased its position in Johnson Controls International plc (NYSE:JCI - Free Report) by 49.2% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 239,971 shares of the company's stock after acquiring an additional 79,083 shares during the quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC's holdings in Johnson Controls International were worth $18,941,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. Park Avenue Securities LLC boosted its stake in Johnson Controls International by 101.5% during the fourth quarter. Park Avenue Securities LLC now owns 26,517 shares of the company's stock valued at $2,093,000 after buying an additional 13,360 shares during the period. Certuity LLC purchased a new position in shares of Johnson Controls International during the fourth quarter worth about $243,000. BNC Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Johnson Controls International during the fourth quarter worth about $2,093,000. Seros Financial LLC purchased a new stake in Johnson Controls International in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $561,000. Finally, Czech National Bank lifted its position in Johnson Controls International by 6.4% during the fourth quarter. Czech National Bank now owns 144,839 shares of the company's stock valued at $11,432,000 after purchasing an additional 8,758 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 90.05% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms have recently issued reports on JCI. UBS Group raised shares of Johnson Controls International from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and lifted their price objective for the stock from $90.00 to $103.00 in a report on Monday, February 10th. Barclays dropped their target price on Johnson Controls International from $88.00 to $85.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a research report on Monday, March 10th. Melius cut shares of Johnson Controls International from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating and set a $95.00 price target on the stock. in a research report on Tuesday, January 28th. Morgan Stanley boosted their price objective on shares of Johnson Controls International from $95.00 to $105.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Thursday, February 6th. Finally, Citigroup reduced their target price on shares of Johnson Controls International from $95.00 to $85.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a report on Monday, April 14th. Eight equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have given a buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $92.31.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Johnson Controls International news, VP Nathan D. Manning sold 1,422 shares of Johnson Controls International stock in a transaction on Thursday, May 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $86.91, for a total transaction of $123,586.02. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now owns 144,704 shares in the company, valued at approximately $12,576,224.64. The trade was a 0.97 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, CEO George Oliver sold 205,168 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Friday, February 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $88.03, for a total value of $18,060,939.04. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 1,260,527 shares in the company, valued at $110,964,191.81. This trade represents a 14.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 905,337 shares of company stock worth $77,781,963 in the last three months. 0.54% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Johnson Controls International Trading Up 1.7 %

NYSE:JCI traded up $1.52 during trading hours on Thursday, hitting $91.27. The company had a trading volume of 9,040,814 shares, compared to its average volume of 4,394,253. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.50, a current ratio of 1.02 and a quick ratio of 0.86. Johnson Controls International plc has a 52 week low of $64.31 and a 52 week high of $92.41. The company has a market capitalization of $60.25 billion, a PE ratio of 34.84, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.96 and a beta of 1.28. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $80.23 and a 200 day moving average price of $81.36.

Johnson Controls International (NYSE:JCI - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, May 7th. The company reported $0.82 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.77 by $0.05. Johnson Controls International had a net margin of 6.83% and a return on equity of 15.11%. The business had revenue of $5.68 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.64 billion. During the same period last year, the business posted $0.78 earnings per share. Johnson Controls International's quarterly revenue was up 1.4% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities research analysts predict that Johnson Controls International plc will post 3.64 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Johnson Controls International Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, April 17th. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 24th were given a $0.37 dividend. This represents a $1.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.62%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, March 24th. Johnson Controls International's dividend payout ratio is presently 56.49%.

About Johnson Controls International

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.