Raymond James Financial Inc. Invests $24.45 Million in Otis Worldwide Co. (NYSE:OTIS)

Raymond James Financial Inc. acquired a new position in Otis Worldwide Co. (NYSE:OTIS - Free Report) in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm acquired 264,013 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $24,451,000. Raymond James Financial Inc. owned 0.07% of Otis Worldwide at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Resonant Capital Advisors LLC lifted its stake in shares of Otis Worldwide by 3.1% in the fourth quarter. Resonant Capital Advisors LLC now owns 3,455 shares of the company's stock worth $320,000 after buying an additional 105 shares in the last quarter. Montis Financial LLC boosted its stake in shares of Otis Worldwide by 5.2% during the 4th quarter. Montis Financial LLC now owns 2,216 shares of the company's stock worth $205,000 after acquiring an additional 110 shares during the last quarter. Dorsey & Whitney Trust CO LLC raised its stake in shares of Otis Worldwide by 1.7% in the fourth quarter. Dorsey & Whitney Trust CO LLC now owns 6,945 shares of the company's stock worth $643,000 after buying an additional 114 shares during the period. Mesirow Financial Investment Management Inc. lifted its holdings in Otis Worldwide by 1.8% during the fourth quarter. Mesirow Financial Investment Management Inc. now owns 6,480 shares of the company's stock valued at $600,000 after purchasing an additional 117 shares in the last quarter. Finally, PFG Investments LLC raised its position in shares of Otis Worldwide by 4.1% during the 4th quarter. PFG Investments LLC now owns 3,342 shares of the company's stock valued at $309,000 after purchasing an additional 131 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 88.03% of the company's stock.

Otis Worldwide Stock Up 0.5 %

NYSE OTIS traded up $0.46 during trading on Thursday, hitting $92.76. The stock had a trading volume of 935,677 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,203,732. Otis Worldwide Co. has a twelve month low of $89.70 and a twelve month high of $106.83. The company has a market capitalization of $36.78 billion, a PE ratio of 22.81 and a beta of 1.00. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $99.23 and a 200 day moving average price of $98.44.

Otis Worldwide (NYSE:OTIS - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 23rd. The company reported $0.92 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.91 by $0.01. The business had revenue of $3.35 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $3.41 billion. Otis Worldwide had a negative return on equity of 31.76% and a net margin of 11.53%. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Otis Worldwide Co. will post 4.04 earnings per share for the current year.

Otis Worldwide declared that its Board of Directors has initiated a stock buyback program on Thursday, January 16th that permits the company to buyback $2.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization permits the company to purchase up to 5.4% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are typically a sign that the company's board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.

Otis Worldwide Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 6th. Shareholders of record on Friday, May 16th will be given a $0.42 dividend. This is a boost from Otis Worldwide's previous quarterly dividend of $0.39. The ex-dividend date is Friday, May 16th. This represents a $1.68 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.81%. Otis Worldwide's dividend payout ratio is presently 38.42%.

Insider Activity

In other Otis Worldwide news, EVP Peiming Zheng sold 32,694 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Friday, January 31st. The stock was sold at an average price of $95.43, for a total transaction of $3,119,988.42. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 169 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $16,127.67. This trade represents a 99.49 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, EVP Nora E. Lafreniere sold 4,775 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 $450,807.75. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 24,927 shares in the company, valued at $2,353,358.07. This represents a 16.08 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 112,281 shares of company stock worth $10,747,553 in the last 90 days. 0.23% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms have weighed in on OTIS. Barclays raised their price target on Otis Worldwide from $91.00 to $92.00 and gave the company an "underweight" rating in a report on Wednesday, March 26th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price objective on Otis Worldwide from $105.00 to $88.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, April 8th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company decreased their target price on shares of Otis Worldwide from $105.00 to $95.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a research report on Thursday. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, four have given a hold rating and two have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $100.88.

Otis Worldwide Profile

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.