Freedom Investment Management Inc. Takes $585,000 Position in Johnson Controls International plc $JCI

Key Points

• Freedom Investment Management Inc. has acquired 7,299 shares of Johnson Controls International plc worth approximately $585,000, marking its new stake in the company.
• Multiple institutional investors increased their holdings in Johnson Controls during the first quarter, with Allspring Global Investments raising its stake by an astounding 2,213.5% to own over 709,000 shares.
• Johnson Controls announced a stock buyback plan authorizing up to $9 billion for repurchasing shares, indicating confidence among its leadership that the stock is undervalued.

Freedom Investment Management Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Johnson Controls International plc (NYSE:JCI - Free Report) during the first quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor acquired 7,299 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $585,000.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in JCI. Nuveen LLC purchased a new stake in Johnson Controls International during the first quarter valued at approximately $219,110,000. GAMMA Investing LLC raised its position in Johnson Controls International by 10,137.2% during 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 period. Northern Trust Corp raised its position in Johnson Controls International by 18.1% during the fourth quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 6,690,781 shares of the company's stock valued at $528,103,000 after purchasing an additional 1,026,623 shares during the period. Nuveen Asset Management LLC raised its position in Johnson Controls International by 65.4% during 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 period. Finally, Raiffeisen Bank International AG purchased a new stake in Johnson Controls International during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $78,625,000. 90.05% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Johnson Controls International Trading Down 1.6%

NYSE:JCI traded down $1.77 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $106.88. The stock had a trading volume of 4,216,482 shares, compared to its average volume of 5,098,977. Johnson Controls International plc has a one year low of $67.68 and a one year high of $112.63. The company has a market capitalization of $69.94 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 31.71, a PEG ratio of 1.93 and a beta of 1.30. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $106.31 and a 200 day moving average of $94.22. The company has a quick ratio of 0.81, a current ratio of 0.96 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.50.

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

Johnson Controls International Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, July 18th. Shareholders of record on Monday, June 23rd were given a dividend of $0.37 per share. 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 dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 43.92%.

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

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts have issued reports on JCI shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price objective on Johnson Controls International from $81.00 to $98.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Friday, May 16th. Jefferies Financial Group reiterated a "hold" rating and issued a $120.00 price target on shares of Johnson Controls International in a report on Thursday, July 24th. Vertical Research upgraded Johnson Controls International from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $105.00 price target on the stock in a report on Thursday, May 8th. Robert W. Baird increased their price target on Johnson Controls International from $90.00 to $110.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Thursday, July 17th. Finally, Citigroup increased their price target on Johnson Controls International from $110.00 to $112.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Wednesday, July 30th. Nine analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and ten have issued a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $105.72.

Insider Buying and Selling at Johnson Controls International

In other Johnson Controls International news, VP Nathan D. Manning sold 1,422 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, August 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $103.69, for a total transaction of $147,447.18. Following the sale, the vice president owned 140,881 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $14,607,950.89. This trade represents a 1.00% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, VP Anuruddha Rathninde sold 15,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on 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 $4,390,656.62. This trade represents a 26.05% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 19,266 shares of company stock worth $1,986,931 in the last ninety days. Insiders own 0.54% of the company's stock.

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.