Allegion (NYSE:ALLE) Upgraded at StockNews.com

Allegion (NYSE:ALLE) was upgraded by StockNews.com from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report issued on Tuesday.

Several other brokerages have also recently issued reports on ALLE. 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 note on Wednesday, February 19th. Robert W. Baird reduced their price target on shares of Allegion from $152.00 to $144.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, February 19th. Barclays lowered their price objective on shares of Allegion from $134.00 to $130.00 and set an “underweight” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, February 19th. Finally, Morgan Stanley increased their price objective on shares of Allegion from $137.00 to $139.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 19th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have issued a hold rating and one has issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $138.33.

Allegion Stock Up 1.6 %

Shares of NYSE:ALLE traded up $2.08 during midday trading on Tuesday, reaching $130.01. The company had a trading volume of 968,082 shares, compared to its average volume of 892,530. The stock has a market capitalization of $11.22 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.06, a PEG ratio of 3.97 and a beta of 1.11. The stock’s fifty day moving average price is $130.90 and its 200-day moving average price is $137.37. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.32, a current ratio of 2.04 and a quick ratio of 1.43. Allegion has a one year low of $113.27 and a one year high of $156.10.

Allegion (NYSE:ALLE) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 18th. The scientific and technical instruments company reported $1.86 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.75 by $0.11. Allegion had a return on equity of 45.12% and a net margin of 15.84%. The business had revenue of $945.60 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $938.91 million. Equities research analysts expect that Allegion will post 7.77 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, CEO John H. Stone acquired 7,500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, December 3rd. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $140.70 per share, for a total transaction of $1,055,250.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the chief executive officer now directly owns 120,481 shares in the company, valued at $16,951,676.70. This trade represents a 6.64 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, Director Gregg C. Sengstack bought 8,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 19th. The stock was bought at an average price of $125.24 per share, with a total value of $1,001,920.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 8,000 shares in the company, valued at $1,001,920. This represents a ∞ increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. 0.33% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in ALLE. Fiduciary Management Inc. WI acquired a new stake in Allegion in the fourth quarter worth approximately $116,484,000. Norges Bank bought a new stake in shares of Allegion in the 4th quarter worth $108,058,000. Lord Abbett & CO. LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Allegion by 96.8% in the third quarter. Lord Abbett & CO. LLC now owns 1,674,644 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock valued at $244,063,000 after buying an additional 823,874 shares during the period. Raymond James Financial Inc. bought a new position in Allegion during the fourth quarter valued at about $65,175,000. Finally, Boston Partners grew its holdings in Allegion by 11.6% during the fourth quarter. Boston Partners now owns 4,716,756 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock worth $616,503,000 after acquiring an additional 488,390 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 92.21% of the company’s stock.

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.