Otis Worldwide Co. (NYSE:OTIS) CEO Judith Fran Marks Sells 38,012 Shares

Otis Worldwide Co. (NYSE:OTIS) CEO Judith Fran Marks sold 38,012 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $94.41, for a total value of $3,588,712.92. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 245,883 shares in the company, valued at $23,213,814.03. This represents a 13.39 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink.

Otis Worldwide Price Performance

NYSE OTIS opened at $95.91 on Friday. The firm’s fifty day moving average price is $95.31 and its 200 day moving average price is $97.04. Otis Worldwide Co. has a 12 month low of $89.37 and a 12 month high of $106.33. The company has a market capitalization of $38.31 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 23.62 and a beta of 1.06.

Otis Worldwide (NYSE:OTIS) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, January 29th. The company reported $0.93 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.95 by ($0.02). Otis Worldwide had a negative return on equity of 31.76% and a net margin of 11.53%. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Otis Worldwide Co. will post 4.02 earnings per share for the current year.

Otis Worldwide Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 7th. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 14th will be paid a $0.39 dividend. This represents a $1.56 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.63%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 14th. Otis Worldwide’s dividend payout ratio is currently 38.42%.

Otis Worldwide declared that its Board of Directors has initiated a share repurchase program on Thursday, January 16th that allows the company to buyback $2.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization allows the company to purchase up to 5.4% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are usually an indication that the company’s management believes its stock is undervalued.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Otis Worldwide

Institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. Raymond James Financial Inc. acquired a new position in Otis Worldwide in the fourth quarter valued at $24,451,000. Cullen Frost Bankers Inc. increased its position in Otis Worldwide by 0.6% in the 4th quarter. Cullen Frost Bankers Inc. now owns 113,262 shares of the company’s stock valued at $10,489,000 after acquiring an additional 698 shares during the period. Proficio Capital Partners LLC acquired a new position in Otis Worldwide in the 4th quarter valued at about $193,000. M&T Bank Corp raised its stake in Otis Worldwide by 1.7% during the 4th quarter. M&T Bank Corp now owns 187,161 shares of the company’s stock valued at $17,333,000 after acquiring an additional 3,177 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Atria Investments Inc lifted its position in Otis Worldwide by 21.2% during the 4th quarter. Atria Investments Inc now owns 13,149 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,218,000 after acquiring an additional 2,304 shares during the period. 88.03% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

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

About Otis Worldwide

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.