Atria Wealth Solutions Inc. Cuts Stake in Allegion plc (NYSE:ALLE)

Atria Wealth Solutions Inc. reduced its stake in shares of Allegion plc (NYSE:ALLE) by 3.3% in the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The institutional investor owned 2,770 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock after selling 96 shares during the period. Atria Wealth Solutions Inc.’s holdings in Allegion were worth $362,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Brooklyn Investment Group purchased a new position in shares of Allegion in the third quarter valued at $28,000. GAMMA Investing LLC grew its holdings in shares of Allegion by 55.6% in the fourth quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 504 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock valued at $66,000 after purchasing an additional 180 shares in the last quarter. Anchor Investment Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Allegion in the third quarter valued at $71,000. Versant Capital Management Inc grew its holdings in shares of Allegion by 271.5% in the fourth quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 613 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock valued at $80,000 after purchasing an additional 448 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Transamerica Financial Advisors Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Allegion in the third quarter valued at $83,000. 92.21% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Activity at Allegion

In related news, CAO Nickolas A. Musial sold 403 shares of Allegion stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, February 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $124.70, for a total value of $50,254.10. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 4,972 shares in the company, valued at $620,008.40. The trade was a 7.50 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, Director Gregg C. Sengstack acquired 8,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 19th. The stock was purchased at an average price of $125.24 per share, with a total value of $1,001,920.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director now directly owns 8,000 shares of the company’s stock, 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 corporate insiders.

Allegion Stock Up 1.1 %

NYSE:ALLE opened at $128.82 on Friday. Allegion plc has a twelve month low of $113.27 and a twelve month high of $156.10. The company has a market cap of $11.12 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.89, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.97 and a beta of 1.11. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $130.64 and a 200-day simple moving average of $137.26. 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 released its earnings results on Tuesday, February 18th. The scientific and technical instruments company reported $1.86 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate 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. Analysts anticipate that Allegion plc will post 7.77 EPS for the current year.

Allegion Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 31st. Investors of record on Friday, March 14th will be issued a $0.51 dividend. This is an increase from Allegion’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.48. This represents a $2.04 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.58%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 14th. Allegion’s payout ratio is presently 29.91%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts have commented on ALLE shares. Robert W. Baird dropped their price objective on shares of Allegion from $152.00 to $144.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, February 19th. Morgan Stanley lifted 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. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price objective on shares of Allegion from $140.00 to $135.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, February 19th. StockNews.com raised shares of Allegion from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday. Finally, Barclays dropped their price objective on shares of Allegion from $134.00 to $130.00 and set an “underweight” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, February 19th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have issued a hold rating and one has given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $138.33.

About Allegion

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.