Otis Worldwide Co. (NYSE:OTIS) EVP Sells $3,119,988.42 in Stock

Otis Worldwide Co. (NYSE:OTIS) EVP Peiming Zheng sold 32,694 shares of the stock in a transaction dated 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 transaction, the executive vice president now owns 169 shares in the company, valued at approximately $16,127.67. The trade was a 99.49 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link.

Otis Worldwide Price Performance

NYSE OTIS traded down $0.05 during trading hours on Tuesday, hitting $94.50. 1,575,137 shares of the company’s stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,122,247. The company has a market capitalization of $37.75 billion, a PE ratio of 23.28 and a beta of 1.06. Otis Worldwide Co. has a 52-week low of $89.37 and a 52-week high of $106.33. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $95.75 and its 200-day moving average is $97.09.

Otis Worldwide (NYSE:OTIS) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, January 29th. The company reported $0.93 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.95 by ($0.02). Otis Worldwide had a net margin of 11.53% and a negative return on equity of 31.76%. Equities research analysts predict that Otis Worldwide Co. will post 4.02 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Otis Worldwide declared that its board has authorized a stock repurchase plan on Thursday, January 16th that permits the company to repurchase $2.00 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization permits the company to purchase up to 5.4% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are often a sign that the company’s board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.

Otis Worldwide Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 7th. Investors of record on Friday, February 14th will be given a dividend of $0.39 per share. This represents a $1.56 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.65%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 14th. Otis Worldwide’s payout ratio is currently 38.42%.

Institutional Trading of Otis Worldwide

Hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted its holdings in Otis Worldwide by 41.0% in the third quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 28,076,031 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,918,223,000 after acquiring an additional 8,161,946 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of Otis Worldwide by 1.4% in the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 11,031,700 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,146,045,000 after purchasing an additional 152,072 shares during the last quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Otis Worldwide by 58.3% during the 3rd quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 7,349,744 shares of the company’s stock worth $774,863,000 after purchasing an additional 2,706,871 shares during the period. Sarasin & Partners LLP increased its position in shares of Otis Worldwide by 6.0% during the 4th quarter. Sarasin & Partners LLP now owns 4,053,315 shares of the company’s stock worth $375,378,000 after purchasing an additional 229,523 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Wellington Management Group LLP raised its holdings in Otis Worldwide by 11.9% in the 3rd quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 3,680,452 shares of the company’s stock valued at $382,546,000 after buying an additional 391,206 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 88.03% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms have issued reports on OTIS. Wells Fargo & Company cut their target price on Otis Worldwide from $100.00 to $95.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, January 30th. Barclays dropped their price objective on shares of Otis Worldwide from $94.00 to $91.00 and set an “underweight” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, January 8th. Wolfe Research lowered Otis Worldwide from a “peer perform” rating to an “underperform” rating and set a $104.00 price objective on the stock. in a research report on Thursday, December 12th. UBS Group assumed coverage on Otis Worldwide in a report on Wednesday, November 13th. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $113.00 price target for the company. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price objective on shares of Otis Worldwide from $108.00 to $105.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, January 30th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, five have issued a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $102.88.

Otis Worldwide Company 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.