Stock Traders Buy High Volume of Johnson Controls International Call Options (NYSE:JCI)

Johnson Controls International plc (NYSE:JCI) was the recipient of unusually large options trading activity on Wednesday. Stock traders bought 19,207 call options on the company. This is an increase of approximately 1,963% compared to the typical volume of 931 call options.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, VP Nathan D. Manning sold 1,421 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $76.44, for a total value of $108,621.24. Following the sale, the vice president now directly owns 148,346 shares in the company, valued at $11,339,568.24. This trade represents a 0.95 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, CEO George Oliver sold 110,616 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, November 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $84.60, for a total transaction of $9,358,113.60. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 1,244,617 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $105,294,598.20. This represents a 8.16 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 649,208 shares of company stock valued at $54,081,073. Company insiders own 0.54% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Johnson Controls International

A number of large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in JCI. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC increased its holdings in shares of Johnson Controls International by 514.9% during the 3rd quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 5,391,562 shares of the company’s stock worth $418,439,000 after acquiring an additional 4,514,792 shares during the last quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC boosted its position in Johnson Controls International by 3.4% during the third quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC now owns 15,295,506 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,187,084,000 after purchasing an additional 509,293 shares during the period. Proficio Capital Partners LLC increased its holdings in shares of Johnson Controls International by 9,843.4% in the fourth quarter. Proficio Capital Partners LLC now owns 484,542 shares of the company’s stock valued at $38,245,000 after purchasing an additional 479,669 shares during the last quarter. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC bought a new position in shares of Johnson Controls International in the fourth quarter valued at about $32,609,000. Finally, Robeco Schweiz AG acquired a new stake in shares of Johnson Controls International during the 4th quarter worth about $29,160,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 90.05% of the company’s stock.

Johnson Controls International Price Performance

Shares of NYSE JCI opened at $86.09 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.46, a current ratio of 0.94 and a quick ratio of 0.79. The business has a 50-day moving average of $80.72 and a 200-day moving average of $76.69. The stock has a market capitalization of $56.83 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 33.89, a PEG ratio of 2.24 and a beta of 1.32. Johnson Controls International has a fifty-two week low of $52.79 and a fifty-two week high of $88.90.

Johnson Controls International (NYSE:JCI) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 5th. The company reported $0.64 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.59 by $0.05. Johnson Controls International had a return on equity of 14.51% and a net margin of 6.49%. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Johnson Controls International will post 3.45 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Johnson Controls International Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, January 17th. Shareholders of record on Monday, December 23rd were given a dividend of $0.37 per share. This represents a $1.48 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.72%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, December 23rd. Johnson Controls International’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 58.27%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

JCI has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. Melius lowered Johnson Controls International from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and set a $95.00 target price on the stock. in a report on Tuesday, January 28th. Melius Research reiterated a “hold” rating and issued a $95.00 price objective on shares of Johnson Controls International in a research report on Tuesday, January 28th. StockNews.com downgraded shares of Johnson Controls International from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, November 20th. UBS Group began coverage on shares of Johnson Controls International in a research note on Wednesday, November 13th. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $90.00 price target on the stock. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their price objective on shares of Johnson Controls International from $88.00 to $87.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, January 15th. Nine investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Johnson Controls International currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $87.20.

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.