Johnson Controls International Target of Unusually Large Options Trading (NYSE:JCI)

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

Johnson Controls International Stock Down 0.2%

JCI stock opened at $103.40 on Thursday. The stock's 50 day simple moving average is $94.92 and its 200 day simple moving average is $85.96. Johnson Controls International has a fifty-two week low of $64.31 and a fifty-two week high of $105.19. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.48, a quick ratio of 0.81 and a current ratio of 0.96. The company has a market cap of $68.04 billion, a P/E ratio of 27.57, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.26 and a beta of 1.33.

Johnson Controls International (NYSE:JCI - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, May 7th. The company reported $0.82 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.77 by $0.05. Johnson Controls International had a return on equity of 15.13% and a net margin of 10.19%. The business had revenue of $5.68 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.64 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $0.78 EPS. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 1.4% on a year-over-year basis. On average, research analysts expect 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 declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, July 18th. Investors of record on Monday, June 23rd will be paid a dividend of $0.37 per share. This represents a $1.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.43%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, June 23rd. Johnson Controls International's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 39.47%.

Johnson Controls International declared that its board has authorized a share repurchase program on Friday, June 13th that permits the company to buyback $9.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization permits the company to repurchase up to 13.4% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are generally an indication that the company's board believes its shares are undervalued.

Insider Activity at Johnson Controls International

In other Johnson Controls International news, VP Nathan D. Manning sold 1,422 shares of Johnson Controls International stock in a transaction dated Thursday, May 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $86.91, for a total transaction of $123,586.02. Following the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 144,704 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $12,576,224.64. The trade was a 0.97% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, Director George Oliver sold 100,000 shares of Johnson Controls International stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $91.70, for a total value of $9,170,000.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 904,305 shares in the company, valued at $82,924,768.50. The trade was a 9.96% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 147,555 shares of company stock valued at $13,669,414 in the last 90 days. 0.54% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Trading of Johnson Controls International

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. TIAA Trust National Association increased its holdings in Johnson Controls International by 1.0% during the 1st quarter. TIAA Trust National Association now owns 11,339 shares of the company's stock worth $908,000 after purchasing an additional 115 shares in the last quarter. Strategic Blueprint LLC increased its holdings in Johnson Controls International by 4.3% during the 1st quarter. Strategic Blueprint LLC now owns 2,980 shares of the company's stock worth $239,000 after purchasing an additional 123 shares in the last quarter. HighPoint Advisor Group LLC increased its holdings in Johnson Controls International by 1.4% during the 1st quarter. HighPoint Advisor Group LLC now owns 8,976 shares of the company's stock worth $739,000 after purchasing an additional 124 shares in the last quarter. Sfmg LLC increased its holdings in Johnson Controls International by 4.5% during the 1st quarter. Sfmg LLC now owns 2,913 shares of the company's stock worth $233,000 after purchasing an additional 125 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Jackson Hole Capital Partners LLC increased its holdings in Johnson Controls International by 0.7% during the 4th quarter. Jackson Hole Capital Partners LLC now owns 18,621 shares of the company's stock worth $1,470,000 after purchasing an additional 127 shares in the last quarter. 90.05% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research analysts have commented on the company. Oppenheimer downgraded Johnson Controls International from an "outperform" rating to a "market perform" rating in a report on Friday, June 20th. Robert W. Baird lifted their target price on Johnson Controls International from $84.00 to $90.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Thursday, May 8th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft raised Johnson Controls International from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and lifted their target price for the stock from $101.00 to $112.00 in a report on Monday, May 12th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their target price on Johnson Controls International from $81.00 to $98.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Friday, May 16th. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada lifted their target price on Johnson Controls International from $82.00 to $98.00 and gave the stock a "sector perform" rating in a report on Thursday, May 8th. Nine analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $97.88.

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.

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