Rathbones Group PLC Has $23.35 Million Stake in Johnson Controls International plc (NYSE:JCI)

Key Points

• Rathbones Group PLC has reduced its stake in Johnson Controls International plc by 17.4%, now owning 291,452 shares valued at $23.35 million.
• Several analysts have recently upgraded their price targets for Johnson Controls International, with an average target price set at $105.17 amid a mix of hold and buy ratings.
• The company has declared a quarterly dividend of $0.37 per share, and initiated a significant stock repurchase program allowing up to $9 billion in buybacks, indicating a belief in the undervaluation of its shares.

Rathbones Group PLC cut its holdings in Johnson Controls International plc (NYSE:JCI - Free Report) by 17.4% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 291,452 shares of the company's stock after selling 61,386 shares during the period. Rathbones Group PLC's holdings in Johnson Controls International were worth $23,348,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also modified their holdings of JCI. Brighton Jones LLC bought a new stake in Johnson Controls International during the fourth quarter worth about $222,000. Bank Pictet & Cie Europe AG lifted its position in Johnson Controls International by 67.4% during the fourth quarter. Bank Pictet & Cie Europe AG now owns 88,569 shares of the company's stock worth $6,991,000 after purchasing an additional 35,655 shares during the period. Covestor Ltd lifted its position in Johnson Controls International by 50.7% during the fourth quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 648 shares of the company's stock worth $51,000 after purchasing an additional 218 shares during the period. Townsquare Capital LLC lifted its position in Johnson Controls International by 14.1% during the fourth quarter. Townsquare Capital LLC now owns 16,093 shares of the company's stock worth $1,270,000 after purchasing an additional 1,992 shares during the period. Finally, Synovus Financial Corp bought a new stake in Johnson Controls International during the fourth quarter worth about $225,000. 90.05% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms recently weighed in on JCI. The Goldman Sachs Group upped their price objective on shares of Johnson Controls International from $103.00 to $116.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 8th. Citigroup increased their target price on shares of Johnson Controls International from $110.00 to $112.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Wednesday, July 30th. Oppenheimer cut shares of Johnson Controls International from an "outperform" rating to a "market perform" rating in a report on Friday, June 20th. Jefferies Financial Group reissued a "hold" rating and issued a $120.00 target price on shares of Johnson Controls International in a report on Thursday, July 24th. Finally, Robert W. Baird increased their target price on shares of Johnson Controls International from $90.00 to $110.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Thursday, July 17th. Ten equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $105.17.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, VP Nathan D. Manning sold 1,422 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, August 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $103.69, for a total transaction of $147,447.18. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president owned 140,881 shares of the company's stock, valued at $14,607,950.89. This trade represents a 1.00% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, VP Anuruddha Rathninde sold 15,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, June 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $103.13, for a total transaction of $1,546,950.00. Following the sale, the vice president directly owned 42,574 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $4,390,656.62. This trade represents a 26.05% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 19,266 shares of company stock valued at $1,986,931 in the last three months. Insiders own 0.54% of the company's stock.

Johnson Controls International Trading Down 0.5%

NYSE:JCI traded down $0.58 on Thursday, reaching $105.19. 5,250,383 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 5,537,047. The firm has a market capitalization of $68.84 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 31.21, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.88 and a beta of 1.30. The company's 50 day moving average is $105.60 and its 200-day moving average is $92.37. The company has a current ratio of 0.96, a quick ratio of 0.81 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.50. Johnson Controls International plc has a 1-year low of $67.68 and a 1-year high of $112.63.

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

Johnson Controls International Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, July 18th. Shareholders of record on Monday, June 23rd were given a dividend of $0.37 per share. This represents a $1.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.4%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, June 23rd. Johnson Controls International's dividend payout ratio is currently 43.92%.

Johnson Controls International announced that its Board of Directors has approved a stock repurchase program on Friday, June 13th that authorizes the company to buyback $9.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the company to buy up to 13.4% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are often an indication that the company's leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

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.