Douglass Winthrop Advisors LLC Raises Stock Position in Allegion plc (NYSE:ALLE)

Douglass Winthrop Advisors LLC boosted its position in shares of Allegion plc (NYSE:ALLE) by 0.4% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 22,273 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock after acquiring an additional 80 shares during the period. Douglass Winthrop Advisors LLC’s holdings in Allegion were worth $2,911,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of ALLE. Lord Abbett & CO. LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Allegion by 96.8% during the 3rd 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 purchasing an additional 823,874 shares during the last quarter. Raymond James Financial Inc. purchased a new stake in Allegion in the fourth quarter valued at about $65,175,000. Boston Partners boosted its holdings in Allegion by 11.6% in 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 in the last quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC grew its stake in shares of Allegion by 397.8% during the third quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 606,901 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock worth $88,450,000 after acquiring an additional 484,995 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Allianz Asset Management GmbH increased its holdings in shares of Allegion by 312.4% during the fourth quarter. Allianz Asset Management GmbH now owns 574,012 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock valued at $75,012,000 after acquiring an additional 434,820 shares in the last quarter. 92.21% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, Director Gregg C. Sengstack purchased 8,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 19th. The shares were purchased at an average price of $125.24 per share, with a total value of $1,001,920.00. Following the purchase, the director now owns 8,000 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,001,920. The trade was a ? increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, CAO Nickolas A. Musial sold 403 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $124.70, for a total transaction of $50,254.10. Following the completion of the sale, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 4,972 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $620,008.40. The trade was a 7.50 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 3,224 shares of company stock worth $406,636. Company insiders own 0.33% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts recently issued reports on ALLE shares. Robert W. Baird cut their target price on Allegion from $152.00 to $144.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, February 19th. StockNews.com cut Allegion from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, March 7th. Barclays dropped their target price on Allegion from $134.00 to $130.00 and set an “underweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, February 19th. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price target on shares of Allegion from $140.00 to $135.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, February 19th. Finally, Morgan Stanley upped their price objective on shares of Allegion from $137.00 to $139.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 19th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating and six have issued a hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Allegion has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $138.33.

Allegion Stock Down 0.7 %

Allegion stock opened at $127.77 on Friday. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $129.66 and its 200 day moving average price is $136.54. The company has a quick ratio of 1.43, a current ratio of 2.04 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.32. The firm has a market cap of $11.03 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.74, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.97 and a beta of 1.11. Allegion plc has a 52 week low of $113.27 and a 52 week high of $156.10.

Allegion (NYSE:ALLE) last issued its quarterly earnings data 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 net margin of 15.84% and a return on equity of 45.12%. The business had revenue of $945.60 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $938.91 million. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Allegion plc will post 7.77 earnings per share for the current year.

Allegion Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 31st. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 14th will be issued a $0.51 dividend. This is a boost from Allegion’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.48. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 14th. This represents a $2.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.60%. Allegion’s payout ratio is presently 29.91%.

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.