Short Interest in Johnson Controls International plc (NYSE:JCI) Increases By 7.5%

Johnson Controls International plc (NYSE:JCI) saw a significant growth in short interest in the month of January. As of January 31st, there was short interest totalling 9,450,000 shares, a growth of 7.5% from the January 15th total of 8,790,000 shares. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 4,090,000 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 2.3 days. Currently, 1.5% of the company’s shares are short sold.

Insider Activity at Johnson Controls International

In other Johnson Controls International news, VP Daniel C. Mcconeghy sold 1,950 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $87.73, for a total value of $171,073.50. Following the sale, the vice president now owns 24,803 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,175,967.19. This represents a 7.29 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, CEO George Oliver sold 224,152 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, November 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $82.72, for a total transaction of $18,541,853.44. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 1,166,992 shares in the company, valued at approximately $96,533,578.24. This trade represents a 16.11 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 1,113,772 shares of company stock worth $95,772,462 over the last 90 days. 0.54% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in JCI. Raymond James Financial Inc. bought a new position in Johnson Controls International in the fourth quarter worth approximately $568,309,000. Norges Bank bought a new position in Johnson Controls International in the fourth quarter worth approximately $560,549,000. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC raised its position in Johnson Controls International by 514.9% in the third 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 period. Invesco Ltd. raised its position in Johnson Controls International by 13.2% in the fourth quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 18,407,597 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,452,912,000 after acquiring an additional 2,150,573 shares during the period. Finally, Amundi raised its position in Johnson Controls International by 76.7% in the fourth quarter. Amundi now owns 3,870,478 shares of the company’s stock worth $309,422,000 after acquiring an additional 1,680,431 shares during the period. 90.05% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages have weighed in on JCI. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price objective on shares of Johnson Controls International from $92.00 to $98.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, February 6th. Morgan Stanley increased their price target on shares of Johnson Controls International from $95.00 to $105.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, February 6th. Barclays increased their price target on shares of Johnson Controls International from $75.00 to $83.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Thursday, December 5th. Oppenheimer increased their price target on shares of Johnson Controls International from $86.00 to $87.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, November 7th. Finally, Argus upgraded shares of Johnson Controls International from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $88.00 price target on the stock in a report on Friday, December 20th. Eight research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $91.13.

Johnson Controls International Stock Performance

Johnson Controls International stock traded up $0.87 during midday trading on Tuesday, reaching $90.64. 3,508,119 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 4,607,523. The firm has a market capitalization of $59.83 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 34.59, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.48 and a beta of 1.32. The business has a 50 day moving average of $81.62 and a two-hundred day moving average of $77.93. Johnson Controls International has a 12 month low of $56.28 and a 12 month high of $91.14. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.50, a current ratio of 1.02 and a quick ratio of 0.79.

Johnson Controls International (NYSE:JCI) last issued its quarterly earnings data 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 net margin of 6.83% and a return on equity of 15.11%. As a group, research analysts predict that Johnson Controls International will post 3.52 earnings per share for the current year.

Johnson Controls International Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, January 17th. Shareholders of record on Monday, December 23rd were given a $0.37 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, December 23rd. This represents a $1.48 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.63%. Johnson Controls International’s payout ratio is presently 56.49%.

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.