US Asset Management LLC Invests $338,000 in Allegion plc (NYSE:ALLE)

US Asset Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Allegion plc (NYSE:ALLE) during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor bought 2,671 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock, valued at approximately $338,000.

A number of other large investors have also bought and sold shares of ALLE. CVA Family Office LLC bought a new position in shares of Allegion in the fourth quarter valued at $28,000. Ancora Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in Allegion by 153.3% during the third quarter. Ancora Advisors LLC now owns 380 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock worth $40,000 after acquiring an additional 230 shares during the period. Headinvest LLC bought a new position in Allegion during the third quarter valued at about $48,000. Itau Unibanco Holding S.A. bought a new position in shares of Allegion during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $60,000. Finally, Signaturefd LLC increased its position in Allegion by 37.9% in the third quarter. Signaturefd LLC now owns 633 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock worth $66,000 after buying an additional 174 shares during the last quarter. 92.21% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Allegion Stock Up 1.2 %

Shares of ALLE stock traded up $1.54 during midday trading on Thursday, reaching $125.67. 670,358 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 707,340. The firm has a market cap of $10.99 billion, a PE ratio of 20.50, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.38 and a beta of 1.14. The company has a current ratio of 1.31, a quick ratio of 0.87 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.18. The company’s 50 day moving average is $129.02 and its two-hundred day moving average is $120.95. Allegion plc has a 1 year low of $95.94 and a 1 year high of $136.91.

Allegion (NYSE:ALLE) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 25th. The scientific and technical instruments company reported $1.55 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.45 by $0.10. Allegion had a net margin of 14.93% and a return on equity of 48.58%. The company had revenue of $893.90 million during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $888.27 million. During the same period last year, the company posted $1.58 EPS. Allegion’s revenue was down 3.2% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities research analysts predict that Allegion plc will post 7.08 EPS for the current year.

Allegion Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 28th. Stockholders of record on Friday, June 14th will be issued a dividend of $0.48 per share. This represents a $1.92 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.53%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, June 13th. Allegion’s payout ratio is 31.32%.

Insider Activity at Allegion

In other Allegion news, CEO John H. Stone acquired 10,000 shares of Allegion stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 22nd. The stock was bought at an average cost of $132.41 per share, for a total transaction of $1,324,100.00. Following the acquisition, the chief executive officer now owns 104,248 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $13,803,477.68. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. In other news, CEO John H. Stone acquired 10,000 shares of Allegion stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 22nd. The stock was bought at an average price of $132.41 per share, for a total transaction of $1,324,100.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 104,248 shares in the company, valued at $13,803,477.68. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, VP Timothy P. Eckersley sold 5,047 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $129.99, for a total value of $656,059.53. Following the sale, the vice president now owns 35,567 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,623,354.33. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.33% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages recently issued reports on ALLE. Barclays increased their price objective on Allegion from $121.00 to $122.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Tuesday, April 2nd. Mizuho cut shares of Allegion from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and upped their price target for the stock from $140.00 to $141.00 in a report on Friday, February 23rd. StockNews.com upgraded Allegion from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 10th. UBS Group lifted their price target on Allegion from $113.00 to $132.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 16th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company downgraded shares of Allegion from an “overweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and raised their target price for the company from $139.00 to $140.00 in a research note on Wednesday, February 21st. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and one has given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $127.83.

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.