Vanguard Group Inc. Buys 288,576 Shares of Johnson Controls International plc (NYSE:JCI)

Key Points

• Vanguard Group Inc. increased its holdings in Johnson Controls International by 0.4%, owning approximately 10.37% of the company, valued at about $5.48 billion.
• Johnson Controls International announced a share repurchase plan authorizing up to $9 billion to buy back shares, potentially indicating that the board believes the company's stock is undervalued.
• The company reported a quarterly earnings per share (EPS) of $1.05, exceeding analysts' expectations, and had a revenue of $6.05 billion for the quarter.

Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its position in Johnson Controls International plc (NYSE:JCI - Free Report) by 0.4% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 68,444,686 shares of the company's stock after buying an additional 288,576 shares during the quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. owned about 10.37% of Johnson Controls International worth $5,483,104,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in JCI. TIAA Trust National Association raised its stake in Johnson Controls International by 1.0% in the 1st quarter. TIAA Trust National Association now owns 11,339 shares of the company's stock valued at $908,000 after acquiring an additional 115 shares during the period. Strategic Blueprint LLC raised its stake in Johnson Controls International by 4.3% in the 1st quarter. Strategic Blueprint LLC now owns 2,980 shares of the company's stock valued at $239,000 after acquiring an additional 123 shares during the period. HighPoint Advisor Group LLC raised its stake in Johnson Controls International by 1.4% in the 1st quarter. HighPoint Advisor Group LLC now owns 8,976 shares of the company's stock valued at $739,000 after acquiring an additional 124 shares during the period. Sfmg LLC raised its stake in Johnson Controls International by 4.5% in the 1st quarter. Sfmg LLC now owns 2,913 shares of the company's stock valued at $233,000 after acquiring an additional 125 shares during the period. Finally, SeaCrest Wealth Management LLC raised its stake in Johnson Controls International by 2.7% in the 1st 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 period. 90.05% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling at Johnson Controls International

In other news, VP Anuruddha Rathninde sold 15,000 shares of Johnson Controls International 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 completion of the sale, the vice president owned 42,574 shares in the company, valued at $4,390,656.62. The trade was a 26.05% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, 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 value of $147,447.18. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president owned 140,881 shares in the company, valued at approximately $14,607,950.89. This represents a 1.00% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 19,266 shares of company stock valued at $1,986,931 in the last quarter. 0.54% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Johnson Controls International Trading Up 1.0%

Shares of NYSE:JCI traded up $1.09 during trading on Friday, reaching $105.40. The stock had a trading volume of 6,227,770 shares, compared to its average volume of 4,666,734. The firm's fifty day moving average is $105.26 and its 200 day moving average is $91.68. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.50, a quick ratio of 0.81 and a current ratio of 0.96. Johnson Controls International plc has a 52 week low of $66.40 and a 52 week high of $112.63. The stock has a market cap of $68.97 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 31.28, a P/E/G ratio of 1.87 and a beta of 1.30.

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

Johnson Controls International declared that its Board of Directors has initiated a share repurchase program on Friday, June 13th that permits the company to repurchase $9.00 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization permits the company to purchase up to 13.4% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase programs are generally an indication that the company's leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

Johnson Controls International Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, July 18th. Stockholders of record on Monday, June 23rd were paid a $0.37 dividend. 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 payout ratio is currently 43.92%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts recently weighed in on JCI shares. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price target on Johnson Controls International from $100.00 to $130.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Wednesday, June 4th. Barclays boosted their price target on Johnson Controls International from $100.00 to $101.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 30th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price target 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. Robert W. Baird boosted their price target on Johnson Controls International from $90.00 to $110.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Thursday, July 17th. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada boosted their price target on Johnson Controls International from $112.00 to $114.00 and gave the company a "sector perform" rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 30th. Ten investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have issued a buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Johnson Controls International presently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $105.17.

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.