Lazard Freres Gestion S.A.S. Has $102.31 Million Holdings in Otis Worldwide Co. (NYSE:OTIS)

Lazard Freres Gestion S.A.S. grew its stake in Otis Worldwide Co. (NYSE:OTIS) by 8.3% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 1,104,769 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 84,671 shares during the period. Otis Worldwide makes up approximately 2.0% of Lazard Freres Gestion S.A.S.’s holdings, making the stock its 15th biggest position. Lazard Freres Gestion S.A.S.’s holdings in Otis Worldwide were worth $102,312,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Ashton Thomas Securities LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Otis Worldwide in the third quarter worth about $29,000. Fortitude Family Office LLC lifted its position in shares of Otis Worldwide by 485.5% in the fourth quarter. Fortitude Family Office LLC now owns 322 shares of the company’s stock worth $30,000 after buying an additional 267 shares during the last quarter. Centricity Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Otis Worldwide in the fourth quarter worth about $33,000. Golden State Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Otis Worldwide during the 4th quarter worth about $34,000. Finally, Truvestments Capital LLC bought a new stake in Otis Worldwide during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $36,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 88.03% of the company’s stock.

Insider Transactions at Otis Worldwide

In related news, EVP Peiming Zheng sold 32,694 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, January 31st. The stock was sold at an average price of $95.43, for a total transaction of $3,119,988.42. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 169 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $16,127.67. This trade represents a 99.49 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, EVP Nora E. Lafreniere sold 4,775 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $94.41, for a total value of $450,807.75. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 24,927 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,353,358.07. This represents a 16.08 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 112,281 shares of company stock valued at $10,747,553. Corporate insiders own 0.23% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts recently weighed in on OTIS shares. UBS Group started coverage on Otis Worldwide in a research note on Wednesday, November 13th. They set a “neutral” rating and a $113.00 target price for the company. Barclays decreased their target price on Otis Worldwide from $94.00 to $91.00 and set an “underweight” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, January 8th. Wolfe Research downgraded Otis Worldwide from a “peer perform” rating to an “underperform” rating and set a $104.00 target price for the company. in a research note on Thursday, December 12th. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their target price on Otis Worldwide from $100.00 to $95.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, January 30th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their target price on Otis Worldwide from $108.00 to $105.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, January 30th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, five have given a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $102.88.

Otis Worldwide Trading Down 1.2 %

Shares of OTIS stock opened at $99.97 on Thursday. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $96.43 and a two-hundred day moving average of $97.98. Otis Worldwide Co. has a 12 month low of $90.12 and a 12 month high of $106.83. The company has a market capitalization of $39.64 billion, a P/E ratio of 24.62 and a beta of 1.05.

Otis Worldwide (NYSE:OTIS) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, January 29th. The company reported $0.93 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.95 by ($0.02). Otis Worldwide had a negative return on equity of 31.76% and a net margin of 11.53%. Sell-side analysts predict that Otis Worldwide Co. will post 4.04 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Otis Worldwide announced that its board has authorized a share buyback plan on Thursday, January 16th that allows the company to buyback $2.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization allows the company to repurchase up to 5.4% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback plans are often a sign that the company’s board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.

Otis Worldwide Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 7th. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 14th were issued a $0.39 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 14th. This represents a $1.56 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.56%. Otis Worldwide’s payout ratio is presently 38.42%.

Otis Worldwide Company 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.