Johnson Controls International Sees Unusually Large Options Volume (NYSE:JCI)

Johnson Controls International plc (NYSE:JCI - Get Free Report) saw some unusual options trading on Wednesday. Investors purchased 19,207 call options on the company. This represents an increase of approximately 1,963% compared to the average volume of 931 call options.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts recently commented on the company. Argus upgraded Johnson Controls International from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $88.00 price objective for the company in a report on Friday, December 20th. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their price objective on shares of Johnson Controls International from $95.00 to $92.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday. UBS Group started coverage on shares of Johnson Controls International in a research report on Wednesday, November 13th. They issued a "neutral" rating and a $90.00 target price for the company. Barclays boosted their target price on shares of Johnson Controls International from $75.00 to $83.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Thursday, December 5th. Finally, Oppenheimer raised their price target on Johnson Controls International from $86.00 to $87.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Thursday, November 7th. Ten analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $81.07.

Insider Activity at Johnson Controls International

In related news, CEO George Oliver sold 110,615 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, October 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $76.79, for a total value of $8,494,125.85. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 1,243,751 shares of the company's stock, valued at $95,507,639.29. This represents a 8.17 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, EVP Marlon Sullivan sold 7,230 shares of Johnson Controls International stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, December 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $83.35, for a total transaction of $602,620.50. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 32,246 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,687,704.10. This trade represents a 18.31 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 758,588 shares of company stock worth $62,480,987 in the last 90 days. Company insiders own 0.69% of the company's stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Johnson Controls International

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in JCI. Fortitude Family Office LLC grew its holdings in shares of Johnson Controls International by 195.8% in the third quarter. Fortitude Family Office LLC now owns 420 shares of the company's stock valued at $33,000 after purchasing an additional 278 shares during the period. Wolff Wiese Magana LLC raised its position in Johnson Controls International by 977.3% in the third quarter. Wolff Wiese Magana LLC now owns 474 shares of the company's stock valued at $37,000 after purchasing an additional 430 shares during the period. Western Pacific Wealth Management LP acquired a new position in shares of Johnson Controls International in the 3rd quarter valued at $44,000. Larson Financial Group LLC lifted its position in Johnson Controls International by 169.3% in the third quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 738 shares of the company's stock valued at $57,000 after buying an additional 464 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Ashton Thomas Securities LLC purchased a new position in Johnson Controls International during the third quarter worth about $61,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 90.05% of the company's stock.

Johnson Controls International Stock Up 1.1 %

JCI traded up $0.89 during trading on Thursday, hitting $80.06. The stock had a trading volume of 2,185,119 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,216,984. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $81.83 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $75.15. The company has a market capitalization of $53.01 billion, a PE ratio of 31.52, a PEG ratio of 2.31 and a beta of 1.32. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.46, a quick ratio of 0.79 and a current ratio of 0.94. Johnson Controls International has a twelve month low of $51.71 and a twelve month high of $87.16.

Johnson Controls International Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, January 17th. Stockholders of record on Monday, December 23rd will be paid a dividend of $0.37 per share. This represents a $1.48 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.85%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, December 23rd. Johnson Controls International's payout ratio is currently 58.27%.

About Johnson Controls International

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.