TCW Group Inc. Purchases 6,324 Shares of Johnson Controls International plc (NYSE:JCI)

Key Points

• TCW Group Inc. has increased its holdings in Johnson Controls International by 0.7%, now owning approximately 0.13% of the company, valued at about $69.4 million.
• The company also declared a quarterly dividend of $0.37, representing an annual yield of 1.32%, and recently authorized a $9 billion share buyback program.
• Analysts have set new price targets for Johnson Controls International, with Morgan Stanley raising it from $105 to $115, indicating positive sentiment towards the stock.

TCW Group Inc. lifted its holdings in Johnson Controls International plc (NYSE:JCI - Free Report) by 0.7% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 866,868 shares of the company's stock after buying an additional 6,324 shares during the quarter. TCW Group Inc. owned approximately 0.13% of Johnson Controls International worth $69,445,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the business. Alteri Wealth LLC lifted its position in Johnson Controls International by 17.0% in the 1st quarter. Alteri Wealth LLC now owns 6,637 shares of the company's stock valued at $532,000 after purchasing an additional 963 shares during the last quarter. Cornerstone Advisory LLC lifted its position in Johnson Controls International by 4.7% in the 1st quarter. Cornerstone Advisory LLC now owns 3,271 shares of the company's stock valued at $290,000 after purchasing an additional 148 shares during the last quarter. HB Wealth Management LLC lifted its position in Johnson Controls International by 25.9% in the 1st quarter. HB Wealth Management LLC now owns 34,129 shares of the company's stock valued at $2,734,000 after purchasing an additional 7,023 shares during the last quarter. Caliber Wealth Management LLC KS bought a new stake in Johnson Controls International in the 1st quarter valued at about $3,258,000. Finally, Freemont Management S.A. bought a new stake in Johnson Controls International in the 1st quarter valued at about $3,661,000. 90.05% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Johnson Controls International Stock Up 1.5%

Shares of JCI stock traded up $1.58 during trading on Thursday, hitting $105.60. 3,360,274 shares of the company were exchanged, 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 firm has a market capitalization of $69.49 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 31.33, a P/E/G ratio of 1.85 and a beta of 1.31. The business's 50-day simple moving average is $104.51 and its 200 day simple moving average is $90.49. Johnson Controls International plc has a twelve month low of $64.31 and a twelve month high of $112.63.

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

Johnson Controls International Announces Dividend

The firm 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. This represents a $1.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.40%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, June 23rd. Johnson Controls International's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 39.47%.

Johnson Controls International announced that its board has initiated a share buyback plan on Friday, June 13th that allows the company to repurchase $9.00 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization allows the company to purchase up to 13.4% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are usually a sign that the company's leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Vertical Research upgraded shares of Johnson Controls International from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $105.00 price objective on the stock in a research report on Thursday, May 8th. Barclays lifted their price objective on shares of Johnson Controls International from $100.00 to $101.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Wednesday. Jefferies Financial Group reiterated a "hold" rating and issued a $120.00 price objective on shares of Johnson Controls International in a research report on Thursday, July 24th. Robert W. Baird raised their target price on shares of Johnson Controls International from $90.00 to $110.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Thursday, July 17th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their target price on shares of Johnson Controls International from $81.00 to $98.00 and gave the company 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 assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Johnson Controls International has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $105.17.

Insider Buying and Selling at Johnson Controls International

In other Johnson Controls International news, CFO Marc Vandiepenbeeck sold 28,289 shares of Johnson Controls International stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, May 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $90.92, for a total value of $2,572,035.88. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer directly owned 147,673 shares in the company, valued at $13,426,429.16. The trade was a 16.08% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, VP Anuruddha Rathninde sold 15,000 shares of Johnson Controls International stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, June 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $103.13, for a total transaction of $1,546,950.00. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president owned 42,574 shares of the company's stock, valued at $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. Insiders have sold 146,133 shares of company stock valued at $13,581,520 over the last three months. 0.54% of the stock is owned by 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.