Virtu Financial LLC Boosts Stake in Otis Worldwide Co. (NYSE:OTIS)

Virtu Financial LLC raised its position in Otis Worldwide Co. (NYSE:OTIS) by 44.6% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 10,705 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 3,303 shares during the period. Virtu Financial LLC’s holdings in Otis Worldwide were worth $991,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Empowered Funds LLC increased its stake in shares of Otis Worldwide by 10.1% during the 3rd quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 7,286 shares of the company’s stock worth $757,000 after purchasing an additional 668 shares during the last quarter. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans increased its stake in shares of Otis Worldwide by 8.4% during the 3rd quarter. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans now owns 36,612 shares of the company’s stock worth $3,805,000 after purchasing an additional 2,825 shares during the last quarter. Advisors Asset Management Inc. increased its stake in shares of Otis Worldwide by 3.6% during the 3rd quarter. Advisors Asset Management Inc. now owns 9,173 shares of the company’s stock worth $953,000 after purchasing an additional 318 shares during the last quarter. Landscape Capital Management L.L.C. purchased a new stake in shares of Otis Worldwide during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $676,000. Finally, Pacer Advisors Inc. increased its stake in shares of Otis Worldwide by 31.6% during the 3rd quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. now owns 71,444 shares of the company’s stock worth $7,426,000 after purchasing an additional 17,175 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 88.03% of the company’s stock.

Otis Worldwide Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:OTIS opened at $100.97 on Monday. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $97.73 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $98.36. Otis Worldwide Co. has a one year low of $90.12 and a one year high of $106.83. The company has a market cap of $40.04 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 24.87 and a beta of 1.05.

Otis Worldwide (NYSE:OTIS) last announced 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 expect that Otis Worldwide Co. will post 4.04 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Otis Worldwide Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 7th. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 14th were issued a $0.39 dividend. This represents a $1.56 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.54%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 14th. Otis Worldwide’s payout ratio is 38.42%.

Otis Worldwide announced that its board has authorized a stock buyback plan on Thursday, January 16th that authorizes the company to buyback $2.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the company to buy up to 5.4% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are generally an indication that the company’s board believes its stock is undervalued.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

OTIS has been the subject of several research analyst reports. Barclays decreased their price target on shares of Otis Worldwide from $94.00 to $91.00 and set an “underweight” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, January 8th. Wolfe Research lowered 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. Wells Fargo & Company cut their price objective on shares of Otis Worldwide from $100.00 to $95.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, January 30th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price objective on shares of Otis Worldwide from $108.00 to $105.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, January 30th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, five have given a hold rating and two have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, Otis Worldwide presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $102.88.

Insider Buying and Selling at Otis Worldwide

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 shares were sold at an average price of $95.43, for a total value of $3,119,988.42. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 169 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $16,127.67. This trade represents a 99.49 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, CEO Judith Fran Marks sold 38,012 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $94.41, for a total transaction of $3,588,712.92. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 245,883 shares in the company, valued at approximately $23,213,814.03. This trade represents a 13.39 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 112,281 shares of company stock valued at $10,747,553 in the last three months. Company insiders own 0.23% of the company’s stock.

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.