Johnson Controls International plc (NYSE:JCI) Shares Sold by Altfest L J & Co. Inc.

Key Points

• Altfest L J & Co. Inc. has reduced its stake in Johnson Controls International by 50%, selling 6,201 shares and leaving the firm with a total holding valued at $497,000.
• Several other institutional investors have increased their stakes significantly, with Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC raising its holdings by an impressive 2,213.5% in the first quarter.
• Johnson Controls International recently announced a $9.00 billion share buyback plan, indicating confidence from its leadership regarding the company's stock value.

Altfest L J & Co. Inc. lessened its position in shares of Johnson Controls International plc (NYSE:JCI - Free Report) by 50.0% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 6,201 shares of the company's stock after selling 6,201 shares during the period. Altfest L J & Co. Inc.'s holdings in Johnson Controls International were worth $497,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Cerity Partners LLC raised its position in Johnson Controls International by 69.8% during the first quarter. Cerity Partners LLC now owns 113,059 shares of the company's stock valued at $9,057,000 after purchasing an additional 46,459 shares in the last quarter. G&S Capital LLC boosted its position in Johnson Controls International by 81.4% during the first quarter. G&S Capital LLC now owns 30,342 shares of the company's stock valued at $2,431,000 after acquiring an additional 13,612 shares during the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC boosted its position in Johnson Controls International by 27.8% during the first quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 14,720 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,179,000 after acquiring an additional 3,201 shares during the last quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC boosted its position in Johnson Controls International by 2,213.5% during the first quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC now owns 709,431 shares of the company's stock valued at $57,748,000 after acquiring an additional 678,766 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Dynamic Advisor Solutions LLC boosted its position in shares of Johnson Controls International by 22.4% during the 1st quarter. Dynamic Advisor Solutions LLC now owns 5,987 shares of the company's stock worth $480,000 after purchasing an additional 1,096 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 90.05% of the company's stock.

Johnson Controls International Stock Up 1.0%

NYSE:JCI traded up $1.09 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $105.40. The stock had a trading volume of 6,227,770 shares, compared to its average volume of 4,666,734. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $105.26 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $91.74. The company has a market capitalization of $68.97 billion, a PE ratio of 31.28, a PEG ratio of 1.89 and a beta of 1.30. Johnson Controls International plc has a twelve month low of $66.40 and a twelve month high of $112.63. The company has a current ratio of 0.96, a quick ratio of 0.81 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.50.

Johnson Controls International (NYSE:JCI - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, July 29th. The company reported $1.05 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.99 by $0.06. The business had revenue of $6.05 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.99 billion. Johnson Controls International had a net margin of 9.53% and a return on equity of 14.71%. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Johnson Controls International plc will post 3.64 EPS for the current year.

Johnson Controls International declared that its board has authorized a share buyback program on Friday, June 13th that authorizes the company to buyback $9.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the company to purchase up to 13.4% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are often an indication that the company's leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

Johnson Controls International Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, July 18th. Shareholders of record on Monday, June 23rd were paid a $0.37 dividend. This represents a $1.48 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.4%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, June 23rd. Johnson Controls International's payout ratio is currently 43.92%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Johnson Controls International

In other Johnson Controls International news, VP Nathan D. Manning sold 1,422 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Friday, August 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $103.69, for a total value of $147,447.18. Following the transaction, the vice president directly owned 140,881 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $14,607,950.89. The trade was a 1.00% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, VP Anuruddha Rathninde sold 15,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Friday, June 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $103.13, for a total transaction of $1,546,950.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president directly owned 42,574 shares in the company, valued at $4,390,656.62. This represents a 26.05% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 19,266 shares of company stock worth $1,986,931 over the last three months. 0.54% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research firms recently weighed in on JCI. Wells Fargo & Company upped their target price on shares of Johnson Controls International from $100.00 to $130.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Wednesday, June 4th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upgraded shares of Johnson Controls International from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and raised their price target for the stock from $101.00 to $112.00 in a research note on Monday, May 12th. Robert W. Baird raised their price target on shares of Johnson Controls International from $90.00 to $110.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Thursday, July 17th. Morgan Stanley raised their price objective on shares of Johnson Controls International from $105.00 to $115.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Friday, May 9th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price objective on shares of Johnson Controls International from $81.00 to $98.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Friday, May 16th. Ten investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have given a buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $105.17.

Johnson Controls International 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.