Swiss National Bank Sells 19,500 Shares of Johnson Controls International plc (NYSE:JCI)

Key Points

• The Swiss National Bank reduced its stake in Johnson Controls International plc by 1.0%, holding approximately $149.61 million worth of stock after selling 19,500 shares.
• Institutional investors now own 90.05% of Johnson Controls International's shares, highlighting significant institutional confidence in the company.
• Johnson Controls recently announced a share repurchase plan allowing up to $9.00 billion in stock buybacks, indicating that the Board believes the stock may be undervalued.

Swiss National Bank cut its position in Johnson Controls International plc (NYSE:JCI - Free Report) by 1.0% during the first quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 1,867,581 shares of the company's stock after selling 19,500 shares during the quarter. Swiss National Bank owned approximately 0.28% of Johnson Controls International worth $149,612,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. Accent Capital Management LLC acquired a new position in Johnson Controls International in the 1st quarter valued at $26,000. Cornerstone Planning Group LLC grew its stake in Johnson Controls International by 74.5% in the 1st quarter. Cornerstone Planning Group LLC now owns 363 shares of the company's stock valued at $28,000 after buying an additional 155 shares during the last quarter. Community Bank N.A. acquired a new position in Johnson Controls International in the 1st quarter valued at $32,000. Rossby Financial LCC acquired a new position in Johnson Controls International in the 1st quarter valued at $42,000. Finally, Bartlett & CO. Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in Johnson Controls International in the 1st quarter valued at $43,000. 90.05% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Johnson Controls International Price Performance

JCI stock traded down $0.91 during trading on Wednesday, hitting $105.73. 3,188,032 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 4,722,482. Johnson Controls International plc has a one year low of $67.68 and a one year high of $112.63. The stock has a market cap of $69.19 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 31.41, a P/E/G ratio of 1.89 and a beta of 1.30. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $105.47 and a 200 day simple moving average of $92.08. 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 (NYSE:JCI - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, July 29th. The company reported $1.05 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating 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 firm had revenue of $6.05 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.99 billion. Equities analysts expect that Johnson Controls International plc will post 3.64 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Johnson Controls International Announces Dividend

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

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

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts have issued reports on the stock. Citigroup raised their price target on shares of Johnson Controls International from $110.00 to $112.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 30th. UBS Group restated a "buy" rating and issued a $116.00 price target (up from $103.00) on shares of Johnson Controls International in a research report on Thursday, May 22nd. Vertical Research upgraded shares of Johnson Controls International from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $105.00 price target on the stock in a research report on Thursday, May 8th. Jefferies Financial Group restated a "hold" rating and issued a $120.00 price target on shares of Johnson Controls International in a research report on Thursday, July 24th. Finally, Oppenheimer lowered shares of Johnson Controls International from an "outperform" rating to a "market perform" rating in a research report on Friday, June 20th. Ten 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.com, Johnson Controls International currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $105.17.

Insider Transactions at Johnson Controls International

In related news, VP Nathan D. Manning sold 1,422 shares of the business'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 directly owned 140,881 shares of the company's stock, valued at $14,607,950.89. The trade was a 1.00% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, VP Anuruddha Rathninde sold 15,000 shares of the business'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 ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 19,266 shares of company stock valued at $1,986,931. Insiders own 0.54% of the company's stock.

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.