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

Johnson Controls International plc (NYSE:JCI) saw unusually large options trading activity on Wednesday. Traders acquired 19,207 call options on the company. This is an increase of approximately 1,963% compared to the average volume of 931 call options.

Johnson Controls International Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:JCI opened at $121.44 on Thursday. The business’s 50-day simple moving average is $115.75 and its 200 day simple moving average is $109.70. The company has a market cap of $74.22 billion, a P/E ratio of 23.86, a PEG ratio of 1.45 and a beta of 1.41. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.66, a quick ratio of 0.76 and a current ratio of 0.93. Johnson Controls International has a one year low of $68.03 and a one year high of $123.78.

Johnson Controls International (NYSE:JCI) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, November 5th. The company reported $1.26 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.20 by $0.06. The company had revenue of $6.44 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.31 billion. Johnson Controls International had a net margin of 13.95% and a return on equity of 15.35%. Johnson Controls International’s revenue for the quarter was up 3.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $1.28 earnings per share. Johnson Controls International has set its FY 2026 guidance at 4.550-4.55 EPS and its Q1 2026 guidance at 0.830-0.83 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that Johnson Controls International will post 3.64 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Johnson Controls International Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, January 16th. Shareholders of record on Monday, December 22nd will be issued a $0.40 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, December 22nd. This represents a $1.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.3%. Johnson Controls International’s payout ratio is currently 31.43%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Johnson Controls International

In other news, VP Lei Zhang Schlitz sold 32,031 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, November 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $113.20, for a total transaction of $3,625,909.20. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president directly owned 66,780 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $7,559,496. The trade was a 32.42% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. 0.54% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Trading of Johnson Controls International

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. Norges Bank purchased a new position in Johnson Controls International in the second quarter valued at about $795,325,000. Viking Global Investors LP raised its position in shares of Johnson Controls International by 368.5% in the 3rd quarter. Viking Global Investors LP now owns 6,796,942 shares of the company’s stock valued at $747,324,000 after purchasing an additional 5,346,130 shares in the last quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Johnson Controls International by 140.8% during the 2nd quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 4,575,414 shares of the company’s stock valued at $483,281,000 after buying an additional 2,675,157 shares during the last quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB boosted its stake in shares of Johnson Controls International by 1,545.8% during the 3rd quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 2,134,324 shares of the company’s stock valued at $232,705,000 after buying an additional 2,004,643 shares during the last quarter. Finally, AQR Capital Management LLC grew its position in shares of Johnson Controls International by 747.6% during the first quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 2,034,060 shares of the company’s stock worth $159,186,000 after buying an additional 1,794,089 shares in the last quarter. 90.05% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages recently weighed in on JCI. Wolfe Research lifted their target price on Johnson Controls International from $135.00 to $138.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, November 13th. The Goldman Sachs Group cut their price objective on Johnson Controls International from $142.00 to $137.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, December 16th. HSBC lifted their price objective on Johnson Controls International from $79.00 to $127.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, November 24th. UBS Group reissued a “buy” rating and set a $124.00 target price on shares of Johnson Controls International in a research report on Thursday, November 6th. Finally, Citigroup raised their price target on shares of Johnson Controls International from $112.00 to $119.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, October 9th. Ten investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and twelve have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $121.05.

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.