Banque Cantonale Vaudoise Buys New Holdings in Johnson Controls International plc (NYSE:JCI)

Key Points

• Banque Cantonale Vaudoise invested approximately $3.06 million in Johnson Controls International plc (NYSE:JCI) by acquiring 38,141 shares during the first quarter of the year.
• Institutional investors collectively own 90.05% of the company's stock, with notable increases in positions from firms such as Federated Hermes Inc. and Lazard Freres Gestion S.A.S. during the same period.
• Johnson Controls International recently announced a $9 billion stock repurchase plan and declared a quarterly dividend of $0.37 per share, reflecting its strategy to enhance shareholder value.

Banque Cantonale Vaudoise bought a new stake in Johnson Controls International plc (NYSE:JCI - Free Report) in the first quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor bought 38,141 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $3,055,000.

Other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Invesco Ltd. raised its stake in Johnson Controls International by 13.2% during the 4th quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 18,407,597 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,452,912,000 after acquiring an additional 2,150,573 shares during the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC raised its stake in Johnson Controls International by 10,137.2% during the 1st quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 1,179,219 shares of the company's stock valued at $94,467,000 after acquiring an additional 1,167,700 shares during the last quarter. Northern Trust Corp raised its stake in Johnson Controls International by 18.1% during the 4th quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 6,690,781 shares of the company's stock valued at $528,103,000 after acquiring an additional 1,026,623 shares during the last quarter. Nuveen Asset Management LLC raised its stake in Johnson Controls International by 65.4% during the 4th quarter. Nuveen Asset Management LLC now owns 2,560,645 shares of the company's stock valued at $202,112,000 after acquiring an additional 1,012,067 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Raiffeisen Bank International AG purchased a new stake in Johnson Controls International during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $78,625,000. 90.05% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, CFO Marc Vandiepenbeeck sold 28,289 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Thursday, May 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $90.92, for a total transaction of $2,572,035.88. Following the sale, the chief financial officer owned 147,673 shares in the company, valued at $13,426,429.16. This trade represents a 16.08% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, VP Nathan D. Manning sold 1,422 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, July 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $104.82, for a total value of $149,054.04. Following the sale, the vice president owned 141,860 shares in the company, valued at $14,869,765.20. This trade represents a 0.99% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 146,133 shares of company stock worth $13,581,520 over the last ninety days. Company insiders own 0.54% of the company's stock.

Johnson Controls International Price Performance

Johnson Controls International stock traded up $1.48 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $106.48. 5,337,531 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 4,723,883. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.50, a current ratio of 0.96 and a quick ratio of 0.81. The business's 50 day simple moving average is $104.65 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $90.66. The company has a market capitalization of $70.07 billion, a P/E ratio of 31.60, a PEG ratio of 1.85 and a beta of 1.31. Johnson Controls International plc has a 12-month low of $64.31 and a 12-month high of $112.63.

Johnson Controls International (NYSE:JCI - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, July 29th. The company reported $1.05 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate 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 return on equity of 14.71% and a net margin of 9.53%. 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 initiated a stock repurchase program on Friday, June 13th that allows the company to buyback $9.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization allows the company to buy up to 13.4% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are typically a sign that the company's leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

Johnson Controls International Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, July 18th. Stockholders of record on Monday, June 23rd were issued a dividend of $0.37 per share. The ex-dividend date 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 (DPR) is 39.47%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

JCI has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. Wells Fargo & Company increased their target price on Johnson Controls International from $100.00 to $130.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Wednesday, June 4th. UBS Group reissued a "buy" rating and set a $116.00 target price (up from $103.00) on shares of Johnson Controls International in a research note on Thursday, May 22nd. The Goldman Sachs Group increased their target price on Johnson Controls International from $103.00 to $116.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 8th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft raised Johnson Controls International from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and increased their target price for the stock from $101.00 to $112.00 in a research note on Monday, May 12th. Finally, Vertical Research raised Johnson Controls International from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $105.00 target price for the company in a research note on Thursday, May 8th. Ten analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price 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.