CenterBook Partners LP Invests $405,000 in Johnson Controls International plc (NYSE:JCI)

CenterBook Partners LP acquired a new stake in Johnson Controls International plc (NYSE:JCI - Free Report) in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund acquired 5,057 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $405,000.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in Johnson Controls International in the fourth quarter worth $560,549,000. Invesco Ltd. grew its stake in Johnson Controls International by 13.2% in the fourth quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 18,407,597 shares of the company's stock worth $1,452,912,000 after purchasing an additional 2,150,573 shares during the period. Franklin Resources Inc. grew its stake in Johnson Controls International by 6.0% in the fourth quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 23,344,374 shares of the company's stock worth $1,842,571,000 after purchasing an additional 1,325,500 shares during the period. GAMMA Investing LLC grew its stake 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 worth $94,467,000 after purchasing an additional 1,167,700 shares during the period. Finally, Northern Trust Corp grew its stake in Johnson Controls International by 18.1% in the fourth quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 6,690,781 shares of the company's stock worth $528,103,000 after purchasing an additional 1,026,623 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 90.05% of the company's stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Director George Oliver sold 100,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Friday, May 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $91.70, for a total value of $9,170,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 904,305 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $82,924,768.50. The trade was a 9.96% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, VP Anuruddha Rathninde sold 15,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Friday, June 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $103.13, for a total value of $1,546,950.00. Following the sale, the vice president directly owned 42,574 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,390,656.62. The trade was a 26.05% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 147,555 shares of company stock worth $13,705,106 in the last 90 days. 0.54% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of analysts have weighed in on JCI shares. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upgraded shares of Johnson Controls International from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and raised their price objective for the company from $101.00 to $112.00 in a research note on Monday, May 12th. 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 report on Thursday, May 8th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their target price on Johnson Controls International from $81.00 to $98.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Friday, May 16th. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price objective on Johnson Controls International from $100.00 to $130.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Wednesday, June 4th. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada lifted their price objective on Johnson Controls International from $82.00 to $98.00 and gave the stock a "sector perform" rating in a report on Thursday, May 8th. Nine analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Johnson Controls International currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $103.18.

Johnson Controls International Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:JCI traded up $0.02 during trading on Friday, hitting $108.97. 3,219,955 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 4,345,648. The company has a market cap of $71.71 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 29.06, a PEG ratio of 2.00 and a beta of 1.31. The business's 50-day simple moving average is $102.65 and its 200 day simple moving average is $88.95. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.48, a current ratio of 0.96 and a quick ratio of 0.81. Johnson Controls International plc has a 52-week low of $64.31 and a 52-week high of $109.40.

Johnson Controls International (NYSE:JCI - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, May 7th. The company reported $0.82 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.77 by $0.05. The business had revenue of $5.68 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $5.64 billion. Johnson Controls International had a return on equity of 15.13% and a net margin of 10.19%. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 1.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $0.78 EPS. As a group, equities analysts predict that Johnson Controls International plc will post 3.64 EPS for the current year.

Johnson Controls International declared that its Board of Directors has initiated a stock buyback plan on Friday, June 13th that allows the company to buyback $9.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization allows the company to purchase up to 13.4% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback plans are often a sign that the company's board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.

Johnson Controls International Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, July 18th. Investors of record on Monday, June 23rd were issued a dividend of $0.37 per share. This represents a $1.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.36%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, June 23rd. Johnson Controls International's payout ratio is currently 39.47%.

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.