Fisher Asset Management LLC Cuts Position in Otis Worldwide Co. (NYSE:OTIS)

Fisher Asset Management LLC lessened its stake in Otis Worldwide Co. (NYSE:OTIS) by 3.9% in the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The firm owned 886,843 shares of the company’s stock after selling 36,395 shares during the quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC’s holdings in Otis Worldwide were worth $82,131,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors have also made changes to their positions in the stock. SVB Wealth LLC acquired a new stake in Otis Worldwide in the 4th quarter valued at about $337,000. QRG Capital Management Inc. grew its stake in Otis Worldwide by 7.7% in the 4th quarter. QRG Capital Management Inc. now owns 44,077 shares of the company’s stock valued at $4,082,000 after acquiring an additional 3,139 shares during the last quarter. Proficio Capital Partners LLC acquired a new stake in Otis Worldwide in the 4th quarter valued at about $193,000. Oppenheimer & Co. Inc. grew its stake in Otis Worldwide by 3.6% in the 4th quarter. Oppenheimer & Co. Inc. now owns 9,700 shares of the company’s stock valued at $898,000 after acquiring an additional 337 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Mn Services Vermogensbeheer B.V. grew its stake in Otis Worldwide by 1.7% in the 4th quarter. Mn Services Vermogensbeheer B.V. now owns 159,600 shares of the company’s stock valued at $14,781,000 after acquiring an additional 2,600 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 88.03% of the company’s stock.

Otis Worldwide Stock Performance

NYSE OTIS opened at $99.78 on Friday. Otis Worldwide Co. has a one year low of $90.12 and a one year high of $106.33. The company’s 50 day moving average price is $95.10 and its 200 day moving average price is $97.50. The firm has a market capitalization of $39.56 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 24.58 and a beta of 1.06.

Otis Worldwide (NYSE:OTIS) last posted 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%. Sell-side analysts forecast that Otis Worldwide Co. will post 4.04 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Otis Worldwide Announces Dividend

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

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

Analyst Ratings Changes

OTIS has been the topic of a number of research reports. UBS Group initiated coverage on shares of Otis Worldwide in a research note on Wednesday, November 13th. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $113.00 price objective on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price target on shares of Otis Worldwide from $108.00 to $105.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, January 30th. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price target 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 cut shares of Otis Worldwide from a “peer perform” rating to an “underperform” rating and set a $104.00 price target on the stock. in a research note on Thursday, December 12th. Finally, Barclays decreased their price target on shares of Otis Worldwide from $94.00 to $91.00 and set an “underweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, January 8th. 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. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $102.88.

Insider Activity

In other news, EVP Peiming Zheng sold 32,694 shares of Otis Worldwide stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, January 31st. The shares were sold at an average price of $95.43, for a total transaction of $3,119,988.42. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 169 shares in the company, valued at $16,127.67. This trade represents a 99.49 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, CEO Judith Fran Marks sold 38,012 shares of Otis Worldwide stock in a transaction that occurred 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 $23,213,814.03. This represents a 13.39 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 105,621 shares of company stock worth $10,046,255 over the last 90 days. Company insiders own 0.23% of the company’s stock.

Otis Worldwide 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.