BankPlus Trust Department Takes Position in Allegion plc (NYSE:ALLE)

BankPlus Trust Department bought a new stake in Allegion plc (NYSE:ALLE) in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund bought 500 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock, valued at approximately $65,000.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Lord Abbett & CO. LLC increased its position in Allegion by 96.8% during the 3rd quarter. Lord Abbett & CO. LLC now owns 1,674,644 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock worth $244,063,000 after purchasing an additional 823,874 shares in the last quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC boosted its position in Allegion by 397.8% in the third quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 606,901 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock valued at $88,450,000 after buying an additional 484,995 shares in the last quarter. Allianz Asset Management GmbH boosted its position in Allegion by 312.4% in the fourth quarter. Allianz Asset Management GmbH now owns 574,012 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock valued at $75,012,000 after buying an additional 434,820 shares in the last quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp boosted its position in Allegion by 8.1% in the fourth quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 3,436,127 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock valued at $449,033,000 after buying an additional 257,175 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA boosted its position in Allegion by 13.9% in the third quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 1,904,632 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock valued at $277,581,000 after buying an additional 232,395 shares in the last quarter. 92.21% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Activity

In other news, CEO John H. Stone purchased 7,500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, December 3rd. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $140.70 per share, with a total value of $1,055,250.00. Following the purchase, the chief executive officer now owns 120,481 shares in the company, valued at $16,951,676.70. This represents a 6.64 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, CAO Nickolas A. Musial sold 403 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $124.70, for a total value of $50,254.10. Following the transaction, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 4,972 shares in the company, valued at approximately $620,008.40. This trade represents a 7.50 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.33% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Allegion Stock Up 0.6 %

Shares of ALLE opened at $127.97 on Tuesday. The company has a market capitalization of $11.04 billion, a PE ratio of 18.76, a PEG ratio of 3.97 and a beta of 1.11. Allegion plc has a 12 month low of $113.27 and a 12 month high of $156.10. The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $130.90 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $137.37. The company has a current ratio of 2.04, a quick ratio of 1.43 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.32.

Allegion (NYSE:ALLE) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, February 18th. The scientific and technical instruments company reported $1.86 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.75 by $0.11. The firm had revenue of $945.60 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $938.91 million. Allegion had a return on equity of 45.12% and a net margin of 15.84%. On average, analysts anticipate that Allegion plc will post 7.77 EPS for the current year.

Allegion Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 31st. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 14th will be paid a $0.51 dividend. This represents a $2.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.59%. This is an increase from Allegion’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.48. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 14th. Allegion’s payout ratio is currently 28.15%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts recently weighed in on the company. Morgan Stanley boosted their price objective on Allegion from $137.00 to $139.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 19th. StockNews.com lowered Allegion from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, February 14th. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price objective on Allegion from $140.00 to $135.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, February 19th. Barclays reduced their price objective on Allegion from $134.00 to $130.00 and set an “underweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, February 19th. Finally, Robert W. Baird reduced their price objective on Allegion from $152.00 to $144.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, February 19th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating and six have issued a hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $138.33.

Allegion Company Profile

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.