Johnson Controls International plc (NYSE:JCI) Shares Bought by Lazard Freres Gestion S.A.S.

Key Points

• Lazard Freres Gestion S.A.S. increased its stake in Johnson Controls International by 21.6%, holding 22,145 shares valued at $1.77 million as of its latest SEC filing.
• Johnson Controls reported earnings per share of $0.82 for the latest quarter, surpassing analysts' estimates, and experienced a 1.4% year-over-year revenue growth to $5.68 billion.
• The company announced a $9 billion stock buyback program, indicating confidence in its stock valuation, and recently declared a quarterly dividend of $0.37 per share.

Lazard Freres Gestion S.A.S. raised its position in Johnson Controls International plc (NYSE:JCI - Free Report) by 21.6% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm owned 22,145 shares of the company's stock after acquiring an additional 3,930 shares during the quarter. Lazard Freres Gestion S.A.S.'s holdings in Johnson Controls International were worth $1,774,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of JCI. Cerity Partners LLC lifted its stake in shares of Johnson Controls International by 69.8% in the 1st quarter. Cerity Partners LLC now owns 113,059 shares of the company's stock worth $9,057,000 after purchasing an additional 46,459 shares during the period. G&S Capital LLC raised its position in Johnson Controls International by 81.4% in the first quarter. G&S Capital LLC now owns 30,342 shares of the company's stock worth $2,431,000 after acquiring an additional 13,612 shares during the period. GAMMA Investing LLC raised its position in Johnson Controls International by 27.8% in the first quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 14,720 shares of the company's stock worth $1,179,000 after acquiring an additional 3,201 shares during the period. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC raised its position in Johnson Controls International by 2,213.5% in the first quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC now owns 709,431 shares of the company's stock worth $57,748,000 after acquiring an additional 678,766 shares during the period. Finally, Dynamic Advisor Solutions LLC raised its holdings in Johnson Controls International by 22.4% in the 1st quarter. Dynamic Advisor Solutions LLC now owns 5,987 shares of the company's stock worth $480,000 after purchasing an additional 1,096 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 90.05% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

JCI has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. Wells Fargo & Company raised their target price on Johnson Controls International from $100.00 to $130.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Wednesday, June 4th. UBS Group reaffirmed a "buy" rating and issued a $116.00 price objective (up previously from $103.00) on shares of Johnson Controls International in a research note on Thursday, May 22nd. Morgan Stanley raised their target price on shares of Johnson Controls International from $105.00 to $115.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Friday, May 9th. The Goldman Sachs Group raised their target price on shares of Johnson Controls International from $103.00 to $116.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 8th. Finally, Citigroup raised their target price on shares of Johnson Controls International from $110.00 to $112.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Wednesday. Ten research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $105.17.

Insider Buying and Selling at Johnson Controls International

In other news, VP Nathan D. Manning sold 1,422 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, July 1st. The stock was 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 owned 141,860 shares of the company's stock, valued at $14,869,765.20. The trade was a 0.99% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, 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 value of $1,546,950.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president directly owned 42,574 shares of the company's stock, valued at $4,390,656.62. The trade was a 26.05% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 146,133 shares of company stock valued at $13,581,520. Company insiders own 0.54% of the company's stock.

Johnson Controls International Stock Up 1.5%

JCI traded up $1.59 during trading on Thursday, hitting $105.61. The stock had a trading volume of 3,360,274 shares, compared to its average volume of 4,697,898. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.50, a quick ratio of 0.81 and a current ratio of 0.96. The company has a market capitalization of $69.50 billion, a PE ratio of 31.33, a PEG ratio of 1.85 and a beta of 1.31. Johnson Controls International plc has a twelve month low of $64.31 and a twelve month high of $112.63. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $104.51 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $90.49.

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, topping the consensus estimate 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 business had revenue of $6.05 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.99 billion. On average, research analysts predict that Johnson Controls International plc will post 3.64 earnings per share for the current year.

Johnson Controls International Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced 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 of this dividend was Monday, June 23rd. This represents a $1.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.40%. Johnson Controls International's dividend payout ratio is presently 39.47%.

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

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.