Stock Traders Buy Large Volume of Call Options on Johnson Controls International (NYSE:JCI)

Johnson Controls International plc (NYSE:JCI - Get Free Report) saw some unusual options trading on Wednesday. Stock traders purchased 19,207 call options on the stock. This is an increase of approximately 1,963% compared to the typical volume of 931 call options.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts have weighed in on the stock. Citigroup decreased their target price on shares of Johnson Controls International from $95.00 to $85.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research report on Monday, April 14th. UBS Group reiterated a "buy" rating and set a $116.00 price objective (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 target price on the stock in a report on Thursday, May 8th. Oppenheimer increased their price target on Johnson Controls International from $90.00 to $96.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Thursday, May 8th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft raised Johnson Controls International from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and boosted their price objective for the company from $101.00 to $112.00 in a research note on Monday, May 12th. Eight investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $97.88.

Johnson Controls International Stock Down 1.5%

JCI stock traded down $1.59 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $102.01. 1,784,898 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 4,630,025. The company has a quick ratio of 0.86, a current ratio of 1.02 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.50. The firm's fifty day moving average price is $90.08 and its 200-day moving average price is $84.74. Johnson Controls International has a 52 week low of $64.31 and a 52 week high of $104.15. The company has a market cap of $67.13 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 38.93, a P/E/G ratio of 1.96 and a beta of 1.33.

Johnson Controls International (NYSE:JCI - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, May 7th. The company reported $0.82 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.77 by $0.05. Johnson Controls International had a net margin of 6.83% and a return on equity of 15.11%. The company had revenue of $5.68 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.64 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $0.78 earnings per share. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 1.4% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Johnson Controls International will post 3.64 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Johnson Controls International Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, July 18th. Stockholders of record on Monday, June 23rd will be paid a $0.37 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, June 23rd. This represents a $1.48 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.45%. Johnson Controls International's payout ratio is 39.47%.

Insider Activity

In other news, VP Nathan D. Manning sold 1,422 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Thursday, May 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $86.91, for a total transaction of $123,586.02. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now owns 144,704 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $12,576,224.64. This trade represents a 0.97% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, 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 transaction of $1,546,950.00. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now directly owns 42,574 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,390,656.62. This represents a 26.05% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 147,555 shares of company stock valued at $13,669,414 over the last quarter. 0.54% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Trading of Johnson Controls International

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Truvestments Capital LLC lifted its holdings in Johnson Controls International by 425.0% during the first quarter. Truvestments Capital LLC now owns 315 shares of the company's stock worth $25,000 after acquiring an additional 255 shares during the period. Accent Capital Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Johnson Controls International during the 1st quarter valued at $26,000. Cornerstone Planning Group LLC raised its stake in shares of Johnson Controls International by 74.5% during the 1st quarter. Cornerstone Planning Group LLC now owns 363 shares of the company's stock worth $28,000 after purchasing an additional 155 shares during the period. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. purchased a new position in shares of Johnson Controls International in the 4th quarter worth about $29,000. Finally, Activest Wealth Management grew its position in Johnson Controls International by 56.4% during the first quarter. Activest Wealth Management now owns 369 shares of the company's stock valued at $30,000 after buying an additional 133 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 90.05% of the company's stock.

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.