Vanguard Group Inc. Raises Holdings in Otis Worldwide Co. (NYSE:OTIS)

Vanguard Group Inc. increased its position in shares of Otis Worldwide Co. (NYSE:OTIS) by 0.3% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 45,003,843 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 149,123 shares during the period. Vanguard Group Inc. owned about 11.35% of Otis Worldwide worth $4,167,806,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Stevens Capital Management LP purchased a new stake in Otis Worldwide during the fourth quarter worth $522,000. LPL Financial LLC lifted its stake in shares of Otis Worldwide by 20.7% during the 4th quarter. LPL Financial LLC now owns 210,063 shares of the company’s stock worth $19,454,000 after purchasing an additional 36,032 shares during the last quarter. KLP Kapitalforvaltning AS bought a new stake in Otis Worldwide during the fourth quarter valued at about $19,961,000. Mizuho Securities USA LLC grew its stake in Otis Worldwide by 45.8% in the fourth quarter. Mizuho Securities USA LLC now owns 37,860 shares of the company’s stock valued at $3,506,000 after purchasing an additional 11,886 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Virtu Financial LLC raised its holdings in Otis Worldwide by 44.6% in the fourth quarter. Virtu Financial LLC now owns 10,705 shares of the company’s stock worth $991,000 after purchasing an additional 3,303 shares in the last quarter. 88.03% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. Wolfe Research downgraded shares of Otis Worldwide from a “peer perform” rating to an “underperform” rating and set a $104.00 price objective on the stock. in a research report on Thursday, December 12th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price target on Otis Worldwide from $108.00 to $105.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, January 30th. Barclays lowered their price objective on Otis Worldwide from $94.00 to $91.00 and set an “underweight” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, January 8th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company reduced their target price on Otis Worldwide from $100.00 to $95.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, January 30th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, five have issued a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Otis Worldwide presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $102.88.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, CEO Judith Fran Marks sold 38,012 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $94.41, for a total transaction of $3,588,712.92. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 245,883 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $23,213,814.03. This trade represents a 13.39 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, EVP Nora E. Lafreniere sold 4,775 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $94.41, for a total value of $450,807.75. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 24,927 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,353,358.07. The trade was a 16.08 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders have sold 112,281 shares of company stock valued at $10,747,553. Company insiders own 0.23% of the company’s stock.

Otis Worldwide Stock Performance

Shares of OTIS stock opened at $101.39 on Tuesday. Otis Worldwide Co. has a fifty-two week low of $90.12 and a fifty-two week high of $106.83. The firm has a market capitalization of $40.20 billion, a PE ratio of 24.97 and a beta of 1.05. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $97.94 and its 200-day simple moving average is $98.43.

Otis Worldwide (NYSE:OTIS) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, January 29th. The company reported $0.93 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.95 by ($0.02). Otis Worldwide had a negative return on equity of 31.76% and a net margin of 11.53%. Sell-side analysts forecast that Otis Worldwide Co. will post 4.04 earnings per share for the current year.

Otis Worldwide Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 7th. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 14th were issued a $0.39 dividend. This represents a $1.56 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.54%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 14th. Otis Worldwide’s payout ratio is 38.42%.

Otis Worldwide declared that its board has authorized a share repurchase plan on Thursday, January 16th that permits the company to repurchase $2.00 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization permits the company to buy up to 5.4% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are usually a sign that the company’s board believes its shares are undervalued.

About Otis Worldwide

Otis Worldwide Corporation engages in manufacturing, installation, and servicing of elevators and escalators in the United States, China, and internationally. The company operates in two segments, New Equipment and Service. The New Equipment segment designs, manufactures, sells, and installs a range of passenger and freight elevators, as well as escalators and moving walkways for residential and commercial buildings, and infrastructure projects.