Johnson Controls International plc (NYSE:JCI) Shares Sold by Phoenix Financial Ltd.

Key Points

• Phoenix Financial Ltd. has significantly reduced its stake in Johnson Controls International by 86.6%, selling over 1 million shares, leaving it with only 168,039 shares valued at approximately $13.57 million.
• Multiple institutional investors have adjusted their JCI holdings, with Norges Bank acquiring a new stake worth over $560 million and Invesco Ltd. increasing its holdings by 13.2% during the last quarter.
• Johnson Controls International announced a stock buyback plan worth $9 billion, which reflects the company's leadership belief that its stocks are currently undervalued.

Phoenix Financial Ltd. lowered its holdings in Johnson Controls International plc (NYSE:JCI - Free Report) by 86.6% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 168,039 shares of the company's stock after selling 1,087,602 shares during the period. Phoenix Financial Ltd.'s holdings in Johnson Controls International were worth $13,574,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of JCI. Strategic Blueprint LLC grew its stake in shares of Johnson Controls International by 4.3% during the 1st quarter. Strategic Blueprint LLC now owns 2,980 shares of the company's stock worth $239,000 after acquiring an additional 123 shares during the period. HighPoint Advisor Group LLC grew its stake in shares of Johnson Controls International by 1.4% during the 1st quarter. HighPoint Advisor Group LLC now owns 8,976 shares of the company's stock worth $739,000 after acquiring an additional 124 shares during the period. SeaCrest Wealth Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Johnson Controls International by 2.7% during the 1st quarter. SeaCrest Wealth Management LLC now owns 5,060 shares of the company's stock worth $405,000 after acquiring an additional 135 shares during the period. Abacus Planning Group Inc. grew its stake in shares of Johnson Controls International by 5.2% during the 1st quarter. Abacus Planning Group Inc. now owns 2,714 shares of the company's stock worth $217,000 after acquiring an additional 135 shares during the period. Finally, Wedbush Securities Inc. grew its stake in shares of Johnson Controls International by 1.2% during the 1st quarter. Wedbush Securities Inc. now owns 12,126 shares of the company's stock worth $971,000 after acquiring an additional 145 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 90.05% of the company's stock.

Johnson Controls International Trading Down 5.1%

Shares of NYSE JCI traded down $5.71 during midday trading on Tuesday, hitting $105.81. The company's stock had a trading volume of 5,957,376 shares, compared to its average volume of 4,642,619. The company has a current ratio of 0.96, a quick ratio of 0.81 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.48. The business's 50 day moving average is $104.25 and its two-hundred day moving average is $90.30. Johnson Controls International plc has a 12-month low of $64.31 and a 12-month high of $112.63. The firm has a market cap of $69.63 billion, a P/E ratio of 28.24, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.05 and a beta of 1.31.

Johnson Controls International (NYSE:JCI - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, July 29th. The company reported $1.05 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.99 by $0.06. Johnson Controls International had a return on equity of 15.13% and a net margin of 10.19%. The firm had revenue of $6.05 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.99 billion. As a group, equities research analysts expect that Johnson Controls International plc will post 3.64 EPS for the current year.

Johnson Controls International Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, July 18th. Stockholders of record on Monday, June 23rd were issued a $0.37 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, June 23rd. This represents a $1.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.40%. Johnson Controls International's dividend payout ratio is presently 39.47%.

Johnson Controls International announced that its board has authorized a share buyback program on Friday, June 13th that allows the company to repurchase $9.00 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization allows the company to buy up to 13.4% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase programs are often a sign that the company's board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

JCI has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. Oppenheimer cut Johnson Controls International from an "outperform" rating to a "market perform" rating in a report on Friday, June 20th. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price objective on Johnson Controls International from $100.00 to $130.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Wednesday, June 4th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft raised Johnson Controls International from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and increased their price objective for the stock from $101.00 to $112.00 in a report on Monday, May 12th. Jefferies Financial Group reissued a "hold" rating and set a $120.00 price objective on shares of Johnson Controls International in a report on Thursday, July 24th. Finally, Vertical Research raised Johnson Controls International from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $105.00 price objective on the stock in a report on Thursday, May 8th. Ten research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have issued a buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $104.11.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, Director George Oliver sold 100,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Friday, May 9th. The stock was 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 owned 904,305 shares of the company's stock, valued at $82,924,768.50. This trade represents a 9.96% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, VP Nathan D. Manning sold 1,422 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on 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 sale, the vice president directly 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 disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 147,555 shares of company stock valued at $13,705,106. 0.54% of the stock is owned by insiders.

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.