Fruth Investment Management Reduces Holdings in Allegion plc (NYSE:ALLE)

Fruth Investment Management lowered its holdings in Allegion plc (NYSE:ALLE) by 1.8% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm owned 7,371 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock after selling 133 shares during the quarter. Fruth Investment Management’s holdings in Allegion were worth $992,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the business. CVA Family Office LLC purchased a new position in shares of Allegion in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Robeco Institutional Asset Management B.V. lifted its stake in shares of Allegion by 19.3% in the 4th quarter. Robeco Institutional Asset Management B.V. now owns 23,634 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock valued at $30,000 after purchasing an additional 3,823 shares during the period. Ancora Advisors LLC increased its position in Allegion by 153.3% during the 3rd quarter. Ancora Advisors LLC now owns 380 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock valued at $40,000 after buying an additional 230 shares in the last quarter. Headinvest LLC bought a new position in Allegion during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $48,000. Finally, Signaturefd LLC increased its position in Allegion by 20.9% during the 4th quarter. Signaturefd LLC now owns 765 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock valued at $97,000 after buying an additional 132 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 92.21% of the company’s stock.

Allegion Stock Performance

Allegion stock traded down $0.42 during mid-day trading on Thursday, reaching $115.69. 247,369 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 746,808. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.18, a current ratio of 1.31 and a quick ratio of 0.87. Allegion plc has a fifty-two week low of $95.94 and a fifty-two week high of $136.91. The company has a market capitalization of $10.12 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.87, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.65 and a beta of 1.13. The firm’s fifty day moving average is $120.59 and its two-hundred day moving average is $125.28.

Allegion (NYSE:ALLE) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 25th. The scientific and technical instruments company reported $1.55 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.45 by $0.10. The firm had revenue of $893.90 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $888.27 million. Allegion had a net margin of 14.93% and a return on equity of 48.58%. The business’s quarterly revenue was down 3.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $1.58 earnings per share. On average, equities research analysts expect that Allegion plc will post 7.09 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Allegion Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, June 28th. Investors of record on Friday, June 14th were given a dividend of $0.48 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, June 14th. This represents a $1.92 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.66%. Allegion’s dividend payout ratio is presently 31.32%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

ALLE has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. UBS Group lifted their target price on Allegion from $113.00 to $132.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday, April 16th. Barclays lowered Allegion from an “equal weight” rating to an “underweight” rating and reduced their target price for the stock from $122.00 to $116.00 in a report on Tuesday, June 4th. Finally, StockNews.com raised Allegion from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Monday. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have given a hold rating and one has assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $126.83.

Insider Activity at Allegion

In other Allegion news, SVP Tracy L. Kemp sold 2,194 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, May 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $121.98, for a total transaction of $267,624.12. Following the transaction, the senior vice president now directly owns 11,103 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,354,343.94. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. 0.33% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

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.