Johnson Controls International plc (NYSE:JCI) Given Consensus Recommendation of “Moderate Buy” by Brokerages

Shares of Johnson Controls International plc (NYSE:JCI) have been assigned a consensus recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from the seventeen ratings firms that are covering the company, MarketBeat.com reports. Eight investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have given a buy rating to the company. The average 12-month price objective among analysts that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $103.18.

A number of analysts recently commented on the stock. Morgan Stanley boosted their target price on shares of Johnson Controls International from $105.00 to $115.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, May 9th. Barclays boosted their price target on shares of Johnson Controls International from $90.00 to $100.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 9th. Oppenheimer lowered shares of Johnson Controls International from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating in a report on Friday, June 20th. Royal Bank Of Canada boosted their price target on shares of Johnson Controls International from $82.00 to $98.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a report on Thursday, May 8th. Finally, Citigroup restated a “neutral” rating and set a $110.00 price target (up previously from $94.00) on shares of Johnson Controls International in a report on Monday, July 14th.

Johnson Controls International Stock Performance

Johnson Controls International stock opened at $108.97 on Friday. The firm’s fifty day moving average price is $102.65 and its 200 day moving average price is $88.95. The company has a market capitalization of $71.71 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 29.06, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.00 and a beta of 1.31. Johnson Controls International has a 12-month low of $64.31 and a 12-month high of $109.40. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.48, a current ratio of 0.96 and a quick ratio of 0.81.

Johnson Controls International (NYSE:JCI) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, May 7th. The company reported $0.82 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.77 by $0.05. The company had revenue of $5.68 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.64 billion. Johnson Controls International had a net margin of 10.19% and a return on equity of 15.13%. The company’s revenue was up 1.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $0.78 EPS. On average, research analysts forecast that Johnson Controls International will post 3.64 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Johnson Controls International Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, July 18th. Investors of record on Monday, June 23rd were given a dividend of $0.37 per share. This represents a $1.48 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.36%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, June 23rd. Johnson Controls International’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 39.47%.

Johnson Controls International announced that its Board of Directors has initiated a share repurchase program on Friday, June 13th that permits the company to buyback $9.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization permits the company to buy up to 13.4% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are generally a sign that the company’s leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

Insider Activity

In other Johnson Controls International news, CFO Marc Vandiepenbeeck sold 28,289 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated 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 owned 147,673 shares in the company, valued at approximately $13,426,429.16. This trade represents a 16.08% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, VP Anuruddha Rathninde sold 15,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated 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. The trade was a 26.05% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 147,555 shares of company stock worth $13,705,106. Company insiders own 0.54% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the business. Truvestments Capital LLC raised its holdings in Johnson Controls International by 425.0% during the 1st quarter. Truvestments Capital LLC now owns 315 shares of the company’s stock worth $25,000 after buying an additional 255 shares during the period. Accent Capital Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Johnson Controls International in the first quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Cornerstone Planning Group LLC raised its holdings in shares of Johnson Controls International by 74.5% in the first quarter. Cornerstone Planning Group LLC now owns 363 shares of the company’s stock valued at $28,000 after purchasing an additional 155 shares during the last quarter. Activest Wealth Management raised its holdings in shares of Johnson Controls International by 56.4% in the first quarter. Activest Wealth Management now owns 369 shares of the company’s stock valued at $30,000 after purchasing an additional 133 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Community Bank N.A. acquired a new position in Johnson Controls International during the first quarter worth $32,000. Institutional investors own 90.05% of the company’s stock.

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.