Cerity Partners LLC Grows Stock Holdings in Johnson Controls International plc (NYSE:JCI)

Cerity Partners LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Johnson Controls International plc (NYSE:JCI - Free Report) by 69.8% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 113,059 shares of the company's stock after purchasing an additional 46,459 shares during the quarter. Cerity Partners LLC's holdings in Johnson Controls International were worth $9,057,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Strategic Blueprint LLC raised its stake in Johnson Controls International by 4.3% during the first quarter. Strategic Blueprint LLC now owns 2,980 shares of the company's stock valued at $239,000 after purchasing an additional 123 shares in the last quarter. SeaCrest Wealth Management LLC increased its position in Johnson Controls International by 2.7% during the first quarter. SeaCrest Wealth Management LLC now owns 5,060 shares of the company's stock valued at $405,000 after acquiring an additional 135 shares during the last quarter. Abacus Planning Group Inc. increased its position in Johnson Controls International by 5.2% during the first quarter. Abacus Planning Group Inc. now owns 2,714 shares of the company's stock valued at $217,000 after acquiring an additional 135 shares during the last quarter. HighPoint Advisor Group LLC increased its position in Johnson Controls International by 1.8% during the fourth quarter. HighPoint Advisor Group LLC now owns 8,852 shares of the company's stock valued at $699,000 after acquiring an additional 154 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Cornerstone Planning Group LLC increased its position in Johnson Controls International by 74.5% during the first quarter. Cornerstone Planning Group LLC now owns 363 shares of the company's stock valued at $28,000 after acquiring an additional 155 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 90.05% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

JCI has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. The Goldman Sachs Group boosted their price objective on shares of Johnson Controls International from $103.00 to $116.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 8th. Robert W. Baird boosted their price objective on shares of Johnson Controls International from $84.00 to $90.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Thursday, May 8th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price objective on shares of Johnson Controls International from $81.00 to $98.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Friday, May 16th. Vertical Research upgraded shares of Johnson Controls International from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $105.00 price objective on the stock in a research report on Thursday, May 8th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company upped their price target 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. Nine investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have assigned a buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $102.00.

Johnson Controls International Stock Up 0.4%

Shares of Johnson Controls International stock opened at $106.24 on Tuesday. 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 1 year low of $64.31 and a 1 year high of $107.20. The firm's 50-day moving average is $101.26 and its two-hundred day moving average is $88.22. The stock has a market cap of $69.91 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 28.33, a PEG ratio of 1.92 and a beta of 1.31.

Johnson Controls International (NYSE:JCI - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, May 7th. The company reported $0.82 EPS 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 analyst estimates of $5.64 billion. Johnson Controls International had a net margin of 10.19% and a return on equity of 15.13%. The company's quarterly revenue was up 1.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $0.78 earnings per share. As a group, research analysts expect that Johnson Controls International plc will post 3.64 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Johnson Controls International Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, July 18th. Shareholders of record on Monday, June 23rd will be given a dividend of $0.37 per share. This represents a $1.48 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.39%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, June 23rd. Johnson Controls International's payout ratio is 39.47%.

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

Insider Activity at Johnson Controls International

In related news, VP Nathan D. Manning sold 1,422 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, July 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $104.82, for a total value of $149,054.04. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president directly owned 141,860 shares of the company's stock, valued at $14,869,765.20. This trade represents a 0.99% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, CFO Marc Vandiepenbeeck sold 28,289 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, May 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $90.92, for a total transaction of $2,572,035.88. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer directly owned 147,673 shares of the company's stock, valued at $13,426,429.16. The trade was a 16.08% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 147,555 shares of company stock valued at $13,705,106. Company insiders own 0.54% of the company's stock.

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.

Want to see what other hedge funds are holding JCI? Visit HoldingsChannel.com to get the latest 13F filings and insider trades for Johnson Controls International plc (NYSE:JCI - Free Report).

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest and most accurate reporting. This story was reviewed by MarketBeat's editorial team prior to publication. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.