Traders Buy Large Volume of Johnson Controls International Call Options (NYSE:JCI)

Johnson Controls International plc (NYSE:JCI) saw some unusual options trading on Wednesday. Stock traders acquired 19,207 call options on the stock. This represents an increase of approximately 1,963% compared to the typical daily volume of 931 call options.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts recently weighed in on the stock. The Goldman Sachs Group reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $154.00 price objective on shares of Johnson Controls International in a research report on Thursday. Robert W. Baird set a $132.00 price target on Johnson Controls International in a report on Thursday. HSBC boosted their price objective on Johnson Controls International from $79.00 to $127.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, November 24th. Argus reaffirmed a “buy” rating and issued a $145.00 price objective on shares of Johnson Controls International in a research report on Friday, November 7th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company lifted their target price on Johnson Controls International from $135.00 to $145.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday. Eleven analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and ten have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $131.11.

Insider Buying and Selling at Johnson Controls International

In other news, VP Lei Zhang Schlitz sold 32,031 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, November 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $113.20, for a total value of $3,625,909.20. Following the sale, the vice president owned 66,780 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $7,559,496. This represents a 32.42% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, Director Mark Vergnano bought 7,665 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 5th. The stock was purchased at an average price of $131.94 per share, with a total value of $1,011,320.10. Following the acquisition, the director directly owned 37,602 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,961,207.88. The trade was a 25.60% increase in their position. Additional details regarding this purchase are available in the official SEC disclosure. Corporate insiders own 0.29% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Johnson Controls International

A number of hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Norges Bank bought a new position in shares of Johnson Controls International in the 2nd quarter worth $795,325,000. Viking Global Investors LP grew its stake in Johnson Controls International by 368.5% in the third quarter. Viking Global Investors LP now owns 6,796,942 shares of the company’s stock valued at $747,324,000 after purchasing an additional 5,346,130 shares during the last quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. raised its holdings in Johnson Controls International by 140.8% in the second quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 4,575,414 shares of the company’s stock worth $483,281,000 after purchasing an additional 2,675,157 shares in the last quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB raised its holdings in Johnson Controls International by 1,545.8% in the third quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 2,134,324 shares of the company’s stock worth $232,705,000 after purchasing an additional 2,004,643 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Jennison Associates LLC lifted its position in shares of Johnson Controls International by 232.4% during the second quarter. Jennison Associates LLC now owns 2,124,125 shares of the company’s stock valued at $224,350,000 after buying an additional 1,485,007 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 90.05% of the company’s stock.

Johnson Controls International Price Performance

Shares of JCI stock opened at $132.22 on Friday. Johnson Controls International has a twelve month low of $68.03 and a twelve month high of $136.24. The company has a current ratio of 0.99, a quick ratio of 0.76 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.66. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $117.42 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $112.43. The stock has a market capitalization of $80.93 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 24.90, a P/E/G ratio of 1.51 and a beta of 1.43.

Johnson Controls International (NYSE:JCI) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 4th. The company reported $0.89 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.84 by $0.05. Johnson Controls International had a return on equity of 17.15% and a net margin of 14.17%.The firm had revenue of $5.80 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.64 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $0.64 earnings per share. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 6.8% on a year-over-year basis. Johnson Controls International has set its FY 2026 guidance at 4.700-4.700 EPS and its Q2 2026 guidance at 1.110-1.110 EPS. On average, analysts predict that Johnson Controls International will post 3.64 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Johnson Controls International Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, January 16th. Investors of record on Monday, December 22nd were issued a dividend of $0.40 per share. This represents a $1.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.2%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, December 22nd. Johnson Controls International’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 31.43%.

More Johnson Controls International News

Here are the key news stories impacting Johnson Controls International this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Q1 beat and upgraded guidance — JCI reported Q1 EPS and revenue above Street estimates, raised FY?2026 EPS guidance to $4.70 and set Q2 EPS at $1.11, and cited double?digit order growth and margin improvement. This is the primary driver of the stock rally. Article Title
• Positive Sentiment: Record backlog & data?center tailwind — Management flagged an $18.2B backlog (up ~20% organically) and stronger demand from data?center cooling projects, supporting higher revenue visibility and faster earnings growth. Article Title
• Positive Sentiment: Analyst upgrade / price?target lift — Wells Fargo raised its price target (to $145) and moved to overweight, signaling institutional support and adding upside to the share narrative (helps trading momentum and flows). Article Title
• Positive Sentiment: Director purchase — Director Mark Vergnano bought 7,665 shares (~$1.01M) on Feb 5, increasing his stake ~25.6%, which investors often view as a confidence signal. Article Title
• Positive Sentiment: Heavy call?option buying — Unusually large options flow: ~19,207 calls traded (up ~1,963% vs. normal volume), indicating speculative bullish interest or hedged directional bets ahead of/after the print.
• Neutral Sentiment: Mizuho price?target tweak — Mizuho raised its target to $130 but kept a neutral rating (close to current levels), a less decisive signal than Wells Fargo’s overweight action. Article Title
• Negative Sentiment: Large insider sale — An exec VP disclosed a sale of shares worth ~$6.08M on Feb 4, which can temper sentiment despite the director buy (insider sales for liquidity or diversification can be read negatively). Article Title

Johnson Controls International Company Profile

Johnson Controls International plc is a global diversified technology and multi?industrial company that develops products, services and solutions for buildings and energy storage. The company’s core focus is on improving building efficiency, safety and sustainability through a combination of HVAC equipment, building controls and automation, fire and security systems, and related services. Johnson Controls traces its roots to 1885, when inventor Warren S. Johnson developed an electric room thermostat; over its long history the company has expanded from controls into a broad set of building?related technologies and, through corporate transactions, into a global provider of integrated building solutions.

Johnson Controls’ product and service portfolio includes heating, ventilation and air?conditioning equipment, chillers, air handlers and related mechanical systems, together with building automation and control platforms that monitor and manage energy use, indoor environmental quality and security.