Allegion (NYSE:ALLE) Now Covered by Morgan Stanley

Morgan Stanley began coverage on shares of Allegion (NYSE:ALLE - Free Report) in a research report report published on Monday, MarketBeat Ratings reports. The firm issued an equal weight rating and a $137.00 price target on the scientific and technical instruments company's stock.

ALLE has been the topic of several other reports. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their target price on shares of Allegion from $137.00 to $152.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Monday, October 7th. Mizuho boosted their price objective on shares of Allegion from $135.00 to $150.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Thursday, October 17th. Robert W. Baird increased their target price on shares of Allegion from $145.00 to $152.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Friday, October 25th. Finally, Barclays raised their target price on Allegion from $135.00 to $137.00 and gave the stock an "underweight" rating in a research note on Monday, October 28th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have given a hold rating and one has issued a buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $143.33.

Allegion Price Performance

NYSE ALLE traded down $1.11 on Monday, reaching $129.07. 778,239 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 632,913. The stock has a market cap of $11.22 billion, a PE ratio of 19.83, a P/E/G ratio of 3.35 and a beta of 1.11. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.26, a current ratio of 1.71 and a quick ratio of 1.29. Allegion has a 12 month low of $113.27 and a 12 month high of $156.10. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $137.90 and a 200 day simple moving average of $135.72.

Allegion (NYSE:ALLE - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Thursday, October 24th. The scientific and technical instruments company reported $2.16 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.98 by $0.18. Allegion had a return on equity of 45.64% and a net margin of 15.36%. The company had revenue of $967.10 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $970.70 million. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $1.94 EPS. Allegion's revenue for the quarter was up 5.4% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, research analysts predict that Allegion will post 7.41 earnings per share for the current year.

Allegion Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, December 31st. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, December 17th were issued a $0.48 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, December 17th. This represents a $1.92 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.49%. Allegion's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 29.49%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Allegion news, CEO John H. Stone acquired 7,500 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, December 3rd. The shares were acquired at an average price of $140.70 per share, for a total transaction of $1,055,250.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the chief executive officer now owns 120,481 shares in the company, valued at $16,951,676.70. This trade represents a 6.64 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, SVP Robert C. Martens sold 8,035 shares of Allegion stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, October 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $144.92, for a total transaction of $1,164,432.20. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 7,104 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,029,511.68. The trade was a 53.07 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 0.33% of the company's stock.

Institutional Trading of Allegion

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in ALLE. McClarren Financial Advisors Inc. grew its position in Allegion by 61.0% during the 3rd quarter. McClarren Financial Advisors Inc. now owns 190 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company's stock valued at $27,000 after purchasing an additional 72 shares during the last quarter. TD Private Client Wealth LLC grew its holdings in shares of Allegion by 0.4% during the third quarter. TD Private Client Wealth LLC now owns 19,697 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company's stock valued at $2,871,000 after buying an additional 77 shares during the last quarter. Greenwich Wealth Management LLC increased its position in shares of Allegion by 0.5% during the second quarter. Greenwich Wealth Management LLC now owns 14,908 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company's stock valued at $1,761,000 after acquiring an additional 79 shares in the last quarter. OneDigital Investment Advisors LLC raised its holdings in Allegion by 2.9% in the 3rd quarter. OneDigital Investment Advisors LLC now owns 2,913 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company's stock worth $425,000 after acquiring an additional 82 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Thrive Wealth Management LLC lifted its position in Allegion by 5.0% in the 3rd quarter. Thrive Wealth Management LLC now owns 1,844 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company's stock valued at $269,000 after acquiring an additional 88 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 92.21% of the company's stock.

About Allegion

Allegion plc manufactures and sells mechanical and electronic security products and solutions worldwide. The company offers door controls and systems and exit devices; locks, locksets, portable locks, and key systems and services; electronic security products and access control systems; time, attendance, and workforce productivity systems; doors, accessories, and other.