Johnson Controls International (NYSE:JCI) Stock Lifted to Buy by Wall Street Zen

Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Johnson Controls International (NYSE:JCI) from a hold rating to a buy rating in a research note published on Saturday morning,Wall Street Zen reports.

A number of other research firms also recently issued reports on JCI. Sanford C. Bernstein reiterated an “outperform” rating on shares of Johnson Controls International in a research note on Wednesday, October 7th. The Goldman Sachs Group boosted their price objective on Johnson Controls International from $186.00 to $191.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, September 30th. Citigroup increased their price objective on Johnson Controls International from $170.00 to $172.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 28th. Argus set a $175.00 target price on Johnson Controls International in a report on Friday, August 7th. Finally, Weiss Ratings cut Johnson Controls International from a “buy (a)” rating to a “buy (a-)” rating in a research report on Monday, November 9th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, ten have issued a Buy rating, eleven have issued a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $166.76.

Johnson Controls International Stock Down 2.4%

Shares of NYSE JCI traded down $3.37 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $139.18. 5,047,312 shares of the company’s stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 4,888,477. The stock has a market cap of $84.31 billion, a P/E ratio of 29.74, a PEG ratio of 1.45 and a beta of 1.27. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $147.32 and a 200 day simple moving average of $142.14. Johnson Controls International has a 1-year low of $108.41 and a 1-year high of $160.41. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.55, a current ratio of 0.90 and a quick ratio of 0.75.

Johnson Controls International (NYSE:JCI) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, October 27th. The company reported $1.66 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.59 by $0.07. Johnson Controls International had a net margin of 11.12% and a return on equity of 23.38%. The company had revenue of $7.11 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $7.04 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $1.26 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 10.4% on a year-over-year basis. On average, analysts expect that Johnson Controls International will post 6.29 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Johnson Controls International Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, October 16th. Shareholders of record on Monday, September 21st were given a $0.40 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, September 21st. This represents a $1.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.1%. Johnson Controls International’s payout ratio is currently 34.19%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Johnson Controls International news, Director Juergen Tinggren sold 4,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, October 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $159.19, for a total value of $636,760.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 27,236 shares in the company, valued at $4,335,698.84. This represents a 12.81% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 0.29% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Johnson Controls International

Institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Jump Financial LLC grew its position in Johnson Controls International by 38.7% during the third quarter. Jump Financial LLC now owns 42,767 shares of the company’s stock valued at $6,357,000 after buying an additional 11,934 shares during the period. Flputnam Investment Management Co. raised its position in Johnson Controls International by 767.3% in the third quarter. Flputnam Investment Management Co. now owns 50,722 shares of the company’s stock worth $7,540,000 after acquiring an additional 44,874 shares during the period. L2 Asset Management LLC raised its position in Johnson Controls International by 3.5% in the third quarter. L2 Asset Management LLC now owns 3,615 shares of the company’s stock worth $537,000 after acquiring an additional 122 shares during the period. Pathstone Holdings LLC raised its position in Johnson Controls International by 38.4% in the third quarter. Pathstone Holdings LLC now owns 101,792 shares of the company’s stock worth $16,788,000 after acquiring an additional 28,250 shares during the period. Finally, Cornermen Financial LLC purchased a new position in Johnson Controls International in the third quarter valued at about $264,000. Institutional investors own 90.05% of the company’s stock.

Johnson Controls International Company Profile

Johnson Controls International plc develops building technologies, products and services for commercial, industrial and institutional customers. Its offerings include heating, ventilation and air conditioning (HVAC) equipment, building automation and controls, fire detection and suppression systems, and security solutions. The company also provides maintenance, modernization and other services to help customers manage building operations. Its products and services support facilities such as offices, hospitals, schools, data centers and manufacturing sites.