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

Key Points

• Johnson Controls International saw unusual options activity, with investors buying 19,207 call options on Wednesday — nearly 20 times the normal volume of 931.
• Analysts remain mixed on JCI: several firms raised price targets, but the overall consensus is still Hold with an average target of $147.63.
• The stock was trading up about 2% at $143.87, near its 52-week high, after reporting quarterly EPS of $1.19 and continuing to pay a $0.40 quarterly dividend.

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

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts have recently commented on JCI shares. Rothschild & Co Redburn lifted their price objective on shares of Johnson Controls International from $137.00 to $150.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Monday, February 9th. BNP Paribas Exane started coverage on shares of Johnson Controls International in a research note on Tuesday, April 14th. They set an "underperform" rating and a $120.00 price objective for the company. The Goldman Sachs Group lifted their price objective on shares of Johnson Controls International from $154.00 to $158.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 7th. Mizuho lifted their price objective on shares of Johnson Controls International from $130.00 to $140.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Thursday, May 7th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price objective on shares of Johnson Controls International from $145.00 to $160.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Thursday, May 7th. Eleven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, ten have issued a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $147.63.

Johnson Controls International Trading Up 2.0%

Shares of Johnson Controls International stock opened at $143.87 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.64, a current ratio of 1.04 and a quick ratio of 0.85. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $137.24 and a 200 day moving average price of $127.09. Johnson Controls International has a 1 year low of $95.64 and a 1 year high of $147.32. The stock has a market cap of $87.78 billion, a PE ratio of 25.74, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.55 and a beta of 1.37.

Johnson Controls International (NYSE:JCI - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, March 31st. The company reported $1.19 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter. Johnson Controls International had a net margin of 14.45% and a return on equity of 19.50%. The firm had revenue of $6.14 billion during the quarter. Equities research analysts predict that Johnson Controls International will post 4.87 earnings per share for the current year.

Johnson Controls International Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, April 10th. Investors of record on Monday, March 16th were issued a dividend of $0.40 per share. This represents a $1.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.1%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, March 16th. Johnson Controls International's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 28.62%.

Insider Activity at Johnson Controls International

In other Johnson Controls International news, VP Lei Zhang Schlitz sold 88,809 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, May 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $140.99, for a total value of $12,521,180.91. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president directly owned 57,059 shares in the company, valued at $8,044,748.41. This trade represents a 60.88% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, VP Daniel C. Mcconeghy sold 3,600 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $142.56, for a total transaction of $513,216.00. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president owned 24,273 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $3,460,358.88. This trade represents a 12.92% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. 0.29% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. State Street Corp raised its holdings in shares of Johnson Controls International by 0.6% during the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 28,684,645 shares of the company's stock worth $3,165,286,000 after purchasing an additional 163,167 shares during the last quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Johnson Controls International by 3.3% during the fourth quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 22,655,105 shares of the company's stock worth $2,712,949,000 after purchasing an additional 718,245 shares during the last quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of Johnson Controls International by 1.7% during the fourth quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC now owns 17,239,953 shares of the company's stock worth $2,064,485,000 after purchasing an additional 280,704 shares during the last quarter. Invesco Ltd. raised its holdings in shares of Johnson Controls International by 13.0% during the fourth quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 16,003,486 shares of the company's stock worth $1,916,417,000 after purchasing an additional 1,837,220 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Norges Bank purchased a new position in Johnson Controls International in the fourth quarter valued at $927,739,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 90.05% of the company's stock.

About Johnson Controls International

Johnson Controls International plc is a global diversified technology and multi‑industrial company that develops products, services and solutions for buildings and energy storage. The company's core focus is on improving building efficiency, safety and sustainability through a combination of HVAC equipment, building controls and automation, fire and security systems, and related services. Johnson Controls traces its roots to 1885, when inventor Warren S. Johnson developed an electric room thermostat; over its long history the company has expanded from controls into a broad set of building‑related technologies and, through corporate transactions, into a global provider of integrated building solutions.

Johnson Controls' product and service portfolio includes heating, ventilation and air‑conditioning equipment, chillers, air handlers and related mechanical systems, together with building automation and control platforms that monitor and manage energy use, indoor environmental quality and security.

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