Johnson Controls International Sees Unusually High Options Volume (NYSE:JCI)

Key Points

• Johnson Controls International (NYSE:JCI) experienced an unusual surge in call options trading, with 19,207 contracts purchased, marking a 1,963% increase over the typical volume.
• The company recently declared a quarterly dividend of $0.40 per share, reflecting a boost from the previous dividend of $0.37 and representing a 1.4% yield.
• Analysts have a mixed outlook on JCI stock, with target price revisions ranging from $120.00 to $133.00, indicating a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy".

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

Johnson Controls International Trading Up 2.7%

Shares of NYSE JCI opened at $110.73 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.50, a current ratio of 0.96 and a quick ratio of 0.81. The stock has a market capitalization of $72.46 billion, a P/E ratio of 32.86, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.62 and a beta of 1.33. Johnson Controls International has a 1-year low of $68.03 and a 1-year high of $112.63. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $107.14 and a 200 day moving average price of $99.70.

Johnson Controls International (NYSE:JCI - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, July 29th. The company reported $1.05 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.99 by $0.06. The firm had revenue of $6.05 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $5.99 billion. Johnson Controls International had a return on equity of 14.71% and a net margin of 9.53%. Johnson Controls International has set its FY 2025 guidance at 3.650-3.680 EPS. Q4 2025 guidance at 1.140-1.170 EPS. Equities research analysts expect that Johnson Controls International will post 3.64 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Johnson Controls International Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, October 17th. Shareholders of record on Monday, September 22nd will be paid a $0.40 dividend. This represents a $1.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.4%. This is a boost from Johnson Controls International's previous quarterly dividend of $0.37. The ex-dividend date is Monday, September 22nd. Johnson Controls International's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 47.48%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts have weighed in on JCI shares. Wolfe Research upped their target price on Johnson Controls International from $132.00 to $133.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Friday, September 12th. Zacks Research upgraded Johnson Controls International to a "hold" rating in a report on Monday, August 11th. Oppenheimer cut Johnson Controls International from an "outperform" rating to a "market perform" rating in a report on Friday, June 20th. Jefferies Financial Group reiterated a "hold" rating and issued a $120.00 target price on shares of Johnson Controls International in a report on Thursday, July 24th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their target price on Johnson Controls International from $105.00 to $125.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Wednesday. Ten analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and ten have given a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Johnson Controls International presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $110.89.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, VP Daniel C. Mcconeghy sold 5,917 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, September 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $105.73, for a total transaction of $625,604.41. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president owned 25,005 shares in the company, valued at $2,643,778.65. The trade was a 19.14% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, VP Nathan D. Manning sold 1,422 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, September 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $105.06, for a total value of $149,395.32. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president owned 139,459 shares of the company's stock, valued at $14,651,562.54. This represents a 1.01% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 8,761 shares of company stock valued at $922,447. 0.54% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Johnson Controls International

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its stake in Johnson Controls International by 1.3% in the second quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 69,365,463 shares of the company's stock valued at $7,326,380,000 after buying an additional 920,777 shares during the last quarter. State Street Corp raised its stake in Johnson Controls International by 2.5% in the second quarter. State Street Corp now owns 28,521,478 shares of the company's stock valued at $3,022,673,000 after buying an additional 683,467 shares during the last quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. raised its stake in Johnson Controls International by 3.0% in the second quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 23,223,902 shares of the company's stock valued at $2,452,909,000 after buying an additional 675,862 shares during the last quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC raised its stake in Johnson Controls International by 2.7% in the second quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC now owns 16,604,983 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,753,818,000 after buying an additional 430,437 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Geode Capital Management LLC raised its stake in Johnson Controls International by 0.8% in the second quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 14,285,011 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,501,266,000 after buying an additional 120,078 shares during the last quarter. 90.05% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest and most accurate reporting. This story was reviewed by MarketBeat's editorial team prior to publication. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.