R Squared Ltd Invests $220,000 in Johnson Controls International plc (NYSE:JCI)

Key Points

• R Squared Ltd has invested $220,000 in Johnson Controls International plc, acquiring 2,740 shares during the first quarter.
• Johnson Controls reported earnings of $1.05 per share, exceeding estimates, with revenue of $6.05 billion outperforming projections.
• A new stock repurchase program allows Johnson Controls to buy back up to $9 billion worth of shares, indicating management believes its stock is undervalued.

R Squared Ltd acquired a new position in shares of Johnson Controls International plc (NYSE:JCI - Free Report) in the first quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm acquired 2,740 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $220,000.

Other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. TIAA Trust National Association boosted its holdings in shares of 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 purchasing an additional 115 shares during the last quarter. Strategic Blueprint LLC boosted its holdings in shares of 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 buying an additional 123 shares during the period. HighPoint Advisor Group LLC raised its holdings in shares of Johnson Controls International by 1.4% during the first quarter. HighPoint Advisor Group LLC now owns 8,976 shares of the company's stock valued at $739,000 after buying an additional 124 shares during the last quarter. SeaCrest Wealth Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of Johnson Controls International by 2.7% in 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. Finally, Abacus Planning Group Inc. lifted its stake in Johnson Controls International by 5.2% during the first quarter. Abacus Planning Group Inc. now owns 2,714 shares of the company's stock valued at $217,000 after purchasing an additional 135 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 90.05% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts have weighed in on JCI shares. UBS Group reiterated 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. Royal Bank Of Canada increased their price objective on shares of 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. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price objective on shares of Johnson Controls International from $100.00 to $130.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Wednesday, June 4th. Citigroup raised their target price on shares of Johnson Controls International from $110.00 to $112.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 30th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price objective on shares of Johnson Controls International from $81.00 to $98.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Friday, May 16th. Ten equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $105.17.

Johnson Controls International Stock Down 0.0%

JCI stock traded down $0.04 during trading on Wednesday, reaching $104.80. 378,858 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 4,677,133. 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 $68.96 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 31.07, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.91 and a beta of 1.30. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $105.06 and a 200 day simple moving average of $91.27. Johnson Controls International plc has a 12 month low of $65.69 and a 12 month high of $112.63.

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

Johnson Controls International Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, July 18th. Shareholders of record on Monday, June 23rd were paid 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 1.4%. Johnson Controls International's payout ratio is 43.92%.

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

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, VP Anuruddha Rathninde sold 15,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Friday, June 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $103.13, for a total value of $1,546,950.00. Following the sale, the vice president owned 42,574 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,390,656.62. The trade was a 26.05% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, VP Nathan D. Manning sold 1,422 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Friday, August 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $103.69, for a total value of $147,447.18. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president owned 140,881 shares in the company, valued at $14,607,950.89. This represents a 1.00% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders sold 147,555 shares of company stock worth $13,728,967. 0.54% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

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.