Johnson Controls International plc (NYSE:JCI) Stock Now Rated “Moderate Buy” by Wall Street Brokerages

Johnson Controls International plc (NYSE:JCI) has been assigned a consensus recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from the twenty-four research firms that are covering the company, MarketBeat.com reports. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell recommendation, ten have given a hold recommendation, twelve have given a buy recommendation and one has given a strong buy recommendation to the company. The average 12 month price objective among brokerages that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $163.05.

JCI has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. Wells Fargo & Company started coverage on shares of Johnson Controls International in a research note on Thursday, September 24th. They set an “overweight” rating and a $186.00 target price on the stock. The Goldman Sachs Group raised their target price on Johnson Controls International from $186.00 to $191.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, September 30th. Argus set a $175.00 price target on Johnson Controls International in a report on Friday, August 7th. Weiss Ratings raised Johnson Controls International from a “buy (b)” rating to a “buy (a)” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 8th. Finally, Mizuho upped their price target on Johnson Controls International from $150.00 to $165.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 15th.

Johnson Controls International Stock Performance

Johnson Controls International stock opened at $147.97 on Tuesday. The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $147.30 and its 200-day simple moving average is $143.90. The company has a market cap of $89.63 billion, a P/E ratio of 25.73, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.08 and a beta of 1.27. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.61, a current ratio of 1.00 and a quick ratio of 0.83. Johnson Controls International has a fifty-two week low of $107.83 and a fifty-two week high of $160.41.

Johnson Controls International (NYSE:JCI) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 30th. The company reported $1.42 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.30 by $0.12. Johnson Controls International had a net margin of 14.32% and a return on equity of 22.11%. The business had revenue of $6.61 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.46 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $1.05 EPS. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 9.3% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Johnson Controls International will post 5.08 EPS for the current year.

Johnson Controls International Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, October 16th. Shareholders of record on Monday, September 21st were paid a dividend of $0.40 per share. This represents a $1.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.1%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, September 21st. Johnson Controls International’s payout ratio is 27.83%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Johnson Controls International

In other news, VP Lei Schlitz sold 23,417 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, August 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $153.07, for a total value of $3,584,440.19. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president directly owned 15,017 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,298,652.19. This represents a 60.93% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. 0.29% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Trading of Johnson Controls International

Several institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in JCI. NBH Bank acquired a new stake in Johnson Controls International during the second quarter worth $29,000. Virginia Estate & Retirement Planning Advisors Inc. bought a new stake in Johnson Controls International in the 3rd quarter valued at $33,000. Fourth Dimension Wealth LLC increased its holdings in Johnson Controls International by 51.3% in the 2nd quarter. Fourth Dimension Wealth LLC now owns 230 shares of the company’s stock valued at $34,000 after buying an additional 78 shares during the period. First Bancorp Inc ME bought a new stake in Johnson Controls International in the 2nd quarter valued at $34,000. Finally, SJS Investment Consulting Inc. raised its stake in shares of Johnson Controls International by 747.1% in the 1st quarter. SJS Investment Consulting Inc. now owns 288 shares of the company’s stock valued at $38,000 after buying an additional 254 shares in the last quarter. 90.05% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Johnson Controls International Company Profile

Johnson Controls International plc (NYSE:JCI) is a global provider of building technology, products and services. The company helps customers design, operate and maintain efficient, healthy and secure buildings through solutions for heating, ventilation and air conditioning, building automation, energy management, fire detection and suppression, and physical security.

Its portfolio includes building controls and digital management platforms, HVAC equipment, chillers, air-handling systems, fire and security technologies, and related services.