New York State Teachers Retirement System Grows Stock Holdings in Allegion plc (NYSE:ALLE)

New York State Teachers Retirement System lifted its position in shares of Allegion plc (NYSE:ALLE) by 8.6% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 78,497 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock after buying an additional 6,213 shares during the quarter. New York State Teachers Retirement System’s holdings in Allegion were worth $10,258,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the stock. State Street Corp lifted its stake in Allegion by 1.2% in the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 4,045,966 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock worth $589,659,000 after purchasing an additional 49,929 shares in the last quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp lifted its stake in Allegion by 8.1% in the 4th quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 3,436,127 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock worth $449,033,000 after purchasing an additional 257,175 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its stake in Allegion by 0.4% in the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 2,111,414 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock worth $306,699,000 after purchasing an additional 8,023 shares in the last quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA lifted its stake in Allegion by 13.9% in the 3rd quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 1,904,632 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock worth $277,581,000 after purchasing an additional 232,395 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Lord Abbett & CO. LLC lifted its stake in Allegion by 96.8% in the 3rd quarter. Lord Abbett & CO. LLC now owns 1,674,644 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock worth $244,063,000 after purchasing an additional 823,874 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 92.21% of the company’s stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Allegion news, CEO John H. Stone purchased 7,500 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, December 3rd. The stock was purchased at an average price of $140.70 per share, with a total value of $1,055,250.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 120,481 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $16,951,676.70. This trade represents a 6.64 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Insiders own 0.33% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

ALLE has been the topic of a number of research reports. Barclays reduced their target price on shares of Allegion from $137.00 to $134.00 and set an “underweight” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, January 8th. StockNews.com downgraded shares of Allegion from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, February 14th. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their target price on shares of Allegion from $152.00 to $140.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, January 7th. Morgan Stanley initiated coverage on shares of Allegion in a report on Monday, January 6th. They issued an “equal weight” rating and a $137.00 target price on the stock. Finally, Robert W. Baird boosted their target price on shares of Allegion from $145.00 to $152.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, October 25th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating and six have given a hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Allegion currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $140.83.

Allegion Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:ALLE opened at $125.94 on Wednesday. The company has a market capitalization of $10.95 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.35, a PEG ratio of 3.19 and a beta of 1.11. Allegion plc has a 12 month low of $113.27 and a 12 month high of $156.10. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $132.14 and its 200 day moving average is $137.42. The company has a current ratio of 1.71, a quick ratio of 1.29 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.26.

Allegion (NYSE:ALLE) last issued its 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 net margin of 15.36% and a return on equity of 45.64%. Research analysts predict that Allegion plc will post 7.41 EPS for the current year.

Allegion Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 31st. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 14th will be paid a $0.51 dividend. This is an increase from Allegion’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.48. This represents a $2.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.62%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 14th. Allegion’s dividend payout ratio is currently 29.49%.

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.