ING Groep NV Has $25.57 Million Stock Position in Johnson Controls International plc (NYSE:JCI)

Key Points

• ING Groep NV increased its stake in Johnson Controls International plc by 56.2%, holding approximately $25.57 million worth of shares after acquiring an additional 114,874 shares in the first quarter.
• Multiple brokers have raised price targets for Johnson Controls International, with Vertical Research upgrading the stock to a "buy" and setting a target of $105.00.
• The company recently declared a quarterly dividend of $0.37 per share and authorized a $9.00 billion stock buyback plan, reflecting confidence in its financial standing.

ING Groep NV increased its stake in Johnson Controls International plc (NYSE:JCI - Free Report) by 56.2% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 319,193 shares of the company's stock after buying an additional 114,874 shares during the quarter. ING Groep NV's holdings in Johnson Controls International were worth $25,571,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other large investors also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Invesco Ltd. raised its position in Johnson Controls International by 13.2% during the fourth quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 18,407,597 shares of the company's stock worth $1,452,912,000 after acquiring an additional 2,150,573 shares in the last quarter. Northern Trust Corp increased its stake in shares of Johnson Controls International by 18.1% during the 4th 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 last quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC raised its holdings in shares of Johnson Controls International by 14.4% in the 4th quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 6,168,593 shares of the company's stock valued at $486,887,000 after purchasing an additional 777,031 shares during the period. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP raised its holdings in shares of Johnson Controls International by 1.0% in the 4th quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 5,988,674 shares of the company's stock valued at $472,705,000 after purchasing an additional 59,001 shares during the period. Finally, Envestnet Asset Management Inc. lifted its stake in Johnson Controls International by 4.5% in the 1st quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. now owns 2,561,404 shares of the company's stock valued at $205,194,000 after purchasing an additional 111,347 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 90.05% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages have weighed in on JCI. Vertical Research raised Johnson Controls International from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $105.00 price target on the stock in a research report on Thursday, May 8th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their target price on Johnson Controls International from $81.00 to $98.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Friday, May 16th. Jefferies Financial Group restated a "hold" rating and issued a $120.00 price target on shares of Johnson Controls International in a research note on Thursday, July 24th. UBS Group reissued a "buy" rating and issued a $116.00 price objective (up from $103.00) on shares of Johnson Controls International in a research report on Thursday, May 22nd. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upgraded shares of Johnson Controls International from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and upped their price target for the company from $101.00 to $112.00 in a research note on Monday, May 12th. Ten analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have given a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $105.17.

Johnson Controls International Trading Up 1.4%

Shares of NYSE:JCI opened at $106.48 on Monday. The business's 50 day simple moving average is $104.82 and its 200 day simple moving average is $91.00. Johnson Controls International plc has a 1 year low of $64.31 and a 1 year high of $112.63. 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 company has a market capitalization of $70.07 billion, a P/E ratio of 31.60, a P/E/G ratio of 1.91 and a beta of 1.30.

Johnson Controls International (NYSE:JCI - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results 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 analyst estimates of $5.99 billion. On average, research analysts anticipate that Johnson Controls International plc will post 3.64 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Johnson Controls International Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, July 18th. Investors of record on Monday, June 23rd were given 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 currently 43.92%.

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 buy 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 shares are undervalued.

Insider Activity

In other Johnson Controls International news, VP Anuruddha Rathninde sold 15,000 shares of the business's 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 transaction, the vice president directly owned 42,574 shares in the company, valued at $4,390,656.62. The trade was a 26.05% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, CFO Marc Vandiepenbeeck sold 28,289 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Thursday, May 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $90.92, for a total value of $2,572,035.88. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer directly owned 147,673 shares in the company, valued at approximately $13,426,429.16. This represents a 16.08% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 146,133 shares of company stock worth $13,581,520. 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.

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