Principal Financial Group Inc. Lowers Holdings in Otis Worldwide Co. (NYSE:OTIS)

Principal Financial Group Inc. decreased its holdings in Otis Worldwide Co. (NYSE:OTIS) by 1.8% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 462,548 shares of the company’s stock after selling 8,496 shares during the quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc.’s holdings in Otis Worldwide were worth $42,837,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in OTIS. Blue Trust Inc. lifted its stake in Otis Worldwide by 132.6% in the third quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 3,107 shares of the company’s stock worth $299,000 after acquiring an additional 1,771 shares during the last quarter. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC lifted its stake in Otis Worldwide by 21.0% in the third quarter. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC now owns 11,426 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,188,000 after acquiring an additional 1,981 shares during the last quarter. Eastern Bank purchased a new position in Otis Worldwide in the third quarter worth approximately $779,000. International Assets Investment Management LLC lifted its stake in Otis Worldwide by 11,799.4% in the third quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 207,168 shares of the company’s stock worth $21,533,000 after acquiring an additional 205,427 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Grimes & Company Inc. lifted its stake in Otis Worldwide by 7.9% in the third quarter. Grimes & Company Inc. now owns 5,633 shares of the company’s stock worth $585,000 after acquiring an additional 413 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 88.03% of the company’s stock.

Otis Worldwide Stock Performance

Shares of OTIS opened at $99.02 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $39.26 billion, a P/E ratio of 24.39 and a beta of 1.06. The company’s fifty day moving average is $94.64 and its two-hundred day moving average is $97.22. Otis Worldwide Co. has a 1 year low of $90.12 and a 1 year high of $106.33.

Otis Worldwide (NYSE:OTIS) last announced 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 net margin of 11.53% and a negative return on equity of 31.76%. Sell-side analysts predict that Otis Worldwide Co. will post 4.03 EPS for the current year.

Otis Worldwide declared that its board has authorized a share buyback program on Thursday, January 16th that authorizes the company to buyback $2.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the company to purchase up to 5.4% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are often an indication that the company’s leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

Otis Worldwide Announces Dividend

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. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, February 14th. This represents a $1.56 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.58%. Otis Worldwide’s dividend payout ratio is currently 38.42%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Otis Worldwide

In other news, CEO Judith Fran Marks sold 38,012 shares of the company’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 transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 245,883 shares of the company’s stock, 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 through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Peiming Zheng sold 32,694 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on 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 directly owns 169 shares in the company, valued at approximately $16,127.67. This trade represents a 99.49 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders have sold 105,621 shares of company stock valued at $10,046,255. 0.23% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts recently issued reports on the stock. 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 assumed coverage on shares of Otis Worldwide in a research report on Wednesday, November 13th. They set a “neutral” rating and a $113.00 price objective for the company. Barclays reduced their price objective on shares of Otis Worldwide from $94.00 to $91.00 and set an “underweight” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, January 8th. Wells Fargo & Company reduced 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 research report on Thursday, January 30th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced 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 company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Otis Worldwide presently 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.