AQR Capital Management LLC Boosts Holdings in Johnson Controls International plc $JCI

Key Points

• AQR Capital Management LLC increased its holdings in Johnson Controls International plc by 747.6% in Q1, acquiring a total of 2,034,060 shares worth approximately $159 million.
• Hedge funds hold about 90.05% of Johnson Controls International's stock, indicating significant institutional interest in the company.
• Johnson Controls recently declared a quarterly dividend of $0.37 per share, translating to an annualized dividend of $1.48 and a dividend yield of 1.4%.

AQR Capital Management LLC raised its holdings in Johnson Controls International plc (NYSE:JCI - Free Report) by 747.6% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 2,034,060 shares of the company's stock after purchasing an additional 1,794,089 shares during the quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC owned 0.31% of Johnson Controls International worth $159,186,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in JCI. Nuveen LLC purchased a new stake in Johnson Controls International in the first quarter valued at $219,110,000. Alkeon Capital Management LLC purchased a new stake in Johnson Controls International in the first quarter valued at $112,154,000. GAMMA Investing LLC boosted its holdings in Johnson Controls International by 10,137.2% in the first quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 1,179,219 shares of the company's stock valued at $94,467,000 after purchasing an additional 1,167,700 shares during the last quarter. Nuveen Asset Management LLC boosted its holdings in Johnson Controls International by 65.4% in the fourth quarter. Nuveen Asset Management LLC now owns 2,560,645 shares of the company's stock valued at $202,112,000 after purchasing an additional 1,012,067 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Raiffeisen Bank International AG acquired a new position in shares of Johnson Controls International in the fourth quarter worth about $78,625,000. 90.05% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Activity at Johnson Controls International

In other news, VP Nathan D. Manning sold 1,422 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred 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 completion of the sale, the vice president owned 140,881 shares of the company's stock, valued at $14,607,950.89. This represents a 1.00% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, VP Anuruddha Rathninde sold 15,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred 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 sale, the vice president directly owned 42,574 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $4,390,656.62. This trade represents a 26.05% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders sold 17,844 shares of company stock valued at $1,843,451. Corporate insiders own 0.54% of the company's stock.

Johnson Controls International Stock Down 0.6%

JCI stock opened at $105.28 on Thursday. The company has a market cap of $68.90 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 31.24, a PEG ratio of 1.90 and a beta of 1.31. 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 plc has a 12 month low of $67.68 and a 12 month high of $112.63. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $106.46 and a two-hundred day moving average of $94.57.

Johnson Controls International (NYSE:JCI - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, July 29th. The company reported $1.05 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.99 by $0.06. The company had revenue of $6.05 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.99 billion. Johnson Controls International had a net margin of 9.53% and a return on equity of 14.71%. Johnson Controls International has set its FY 2025 guidance at 3.650-3.680 EPS. Q4 2025 guidance at 1.140-1.170 EPS. As a group, analysts forecast that Johnson Controls International plc will post 3.64 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Johnson Controls International announced that its board has authorized a stock repurchase plan on Friday, June 13th that permits the company to repurchase $9.00 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization permits the company to reacquire up to 13.4% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are generally an indication that the company's board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.

Johnson Controls International Dividend Announcement

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

Analyst Ratings Changes

JCI has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. Jefferies Financial Group reiterated a "hold" rating and issued a $120.00 price objective on shares of Johnson Controls International in a research report on Thursday, July 24th. Zacks Research upgraded shares of Johnson Controls International to a "hold" rating in a research report on Monday, August 11th. Vertical Research upgraded shares of Johnson Controls International from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $105.00 price objective for the company in a research report on Thursday, May 8th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price objective on shares of Johnson Controls International from $81.00 to $98.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Friday, May 16th. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada upped their price objective on shares of Johnson Controls International from $112.00 to $114.00 and gave the stock a "sector perform" rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 30th. Nine investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and ten have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Johnson Controls International has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $105.72.

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.

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