Jefferies Financial Group Inc. Lowers Stock Holdings in Johnson Controls International plc (NYSE:JCI)

Jefferies Financial Group Inc. lessened its stake in Johnson Controls International plc (NYSE:JCI - Free Report) by 22.8% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 11,132 shares of the company's stock after selling 3,297 shares during the period. Jefferies Financial Group Inc.'s holdings in Johnson Controls International were worth $879,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in JCI. Raymond James Financial Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Johnson Controls International during the 4th quarter worth $568,309,000. Norges Bank purchased a new position in shares of Johnson Controls International during the 4th quarter worth $560,549,000. Invesco Ltd. boosted its stake in shares of Johnson Controls International by 13.2% during the 4th 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 during the last quarter. Amundi boosted its stake in shares of Johnson Controls International by 76.7% during the 4th quarter. Amundi now owns 3,870,478 shares of the company's stock worth $309,422,000 after acquiring an additional 1,680,431 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Franklin Resources Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Johnson Controls International by 6.0% during the 4th quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 23,344,374 shares of the company's stock worth $1,842,571,000 after acquiring an additional 1,325,500 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 90.05% of the company's stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Johnson Controls International news, Director George Oliver sold 100,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $91.70, for a total value of $9,170,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 904,305 shares of the company's stock, valued at $82,924,768.50. This trade represents a 9.96% 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 hyperlink. Also, CFO Marc Vandiepenbeeck sold 28,289 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred 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 transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 147,673 shares of the company's stock, valued at $13,426,429.16. This trade represents a 16.08% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 331,133 shares of company stock valued at $27,845,646. Company insiders own 0.54% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upgraded shares of Johnson Controls International from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and lifted their target price for the company from $101.00 to $112.00 in a research note on Monday, May 12th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their target price on shares of Johnson Controls International from $81.00 to $98.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Friday, May 16th. Morgan Stanley lifted their target price on shares of Johnson Controls International from $105.00 to $115.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Friday, May 9th. Barclays lifted their target price on shares of Johnson Controls International from $85.00 to $90.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 14th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company lifted their target price on shares of Johnson Controls International from $82.00 to $100.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Thursday, May 8th. Eight research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $96.12.

Johnson Controls International Price Performance

Shares of Johnson Controls International stock traded down $0.97 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $101.17. The company's stock had a trading volume of 6,829,364 shares, compared to its average volume of 4,284,767. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $85.82 and a 200-day moving average price of $83.59. Johnson Controls International plc has a one year low of $64.31 and a one year high of $102.36. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.50, a current ratio of 1.02 and a quick ratio of 0.86. The stock has a market cap of $66.57 billion, a P/E ratio of 38.61, a P/E/G ratio of 1.96 and a beta of 1.28.

Johnson Controls International (NYSE:JCI - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, May 7th. The company reported $0.82 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.77 by $0.05. Johnson Controls International had a net margin of 6.83% and a return on equity of 15.11%. The firm had revenue of $5.68 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.64 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $0.78 EPS. The business's quarterly revenue was up 1.4% on a year-over-year basis. On average, analysts predict that Johnson Controls International plc will post 3.64 EPS for the current year.

Johnson Controls International Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, April 17th. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 24th were issued a $0.37 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, March 24th. This represents a $1.48 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.46%. Johnson Controls International's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 39.47%.

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.