Allegion plc (NYSE:ALLE) Shares Purchased by QRG Capital Management Inc.

QRG Capital Management Inc. boosted its stake in Allegion plc (NYSE:ALLE) by 8.9% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 21,653 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock after purchasing an additional 1,767 shares during the period. QRG Capital Management Inc.’s holdings in Allegion were worth $2,830,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. grew its stake in shares of Allegion by 2.5% in the third quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 4,925 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock valued at $718,000 after buying an additional 118 shares in the last quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. boosted its holdings in Allegion by 34.8% during the 3rd quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. now owns 8,000 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock valued at $1,150,000 after acquiring an additional 2,065 shares during the period. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC grew its position in Allegion by 22.8% in the 3rd quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 4,076 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock valued at $594,000 after acquiring an additional 757 shares in the last quarter. State of Alaska Department of Revenue increased its stake in Allegion by 6.4% during the third quarter. State of Alaska Department of Revenue now owns 10,128 shares of the scientific and technical instruments company’s stock worth $1,476,000 after purchasing an additional 605 shares during the period. Finally, Stephens Inc. AR acquired a new stake in shares of Allegion during the third quarter worth about $225,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 92.21% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at Allegion

In related news, CEO John H. Stone bought 7,500 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, December 3rd. The stock was acquired at an average price of $140.70 per share, for a total transaction of $1,055,250.00. Following the acquisition, the chief executive officer now owns 120,481 shares in the company, valued at approximately $16,951,676.70. This represents a 6.64 % increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, CAO Nickolas A. Musial sold 403 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $124.70, for a total transaction of $50,254.10. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 4,972 shares in the company, valued at $620,008.40. This trade represents a 7.50 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.33% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Allegion Price Performance

Allegion stock opened at $128.82 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 2.04, a quick ratio of 1.43 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.32. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $130.57 and a 200-day simple moving average of $137.26. The stock has a market cap of $11.12 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.89, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.97 and a beta of 1.11. Allegion plc has a 12-month low of $113.27 and a 12-month high of $156.10.

Allegion (NYSE:ALLE) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 18th. The scientific and technical instruments company reported $1.86 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.75 by $0.11. The company had revenue of $945.60 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $938.91 million. Allegion had a return on equity of 45.12% and a net margin of 15.84%. Equities analysts expect that Allegion plc will post 7.77 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Allegion Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 31st. Investors of record on Friday, March 14th will be issued a $0.51 dividend. This represents a $2.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.58%. This is an increase from Allegion’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.48. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 14th. Allegion’s dividend payout ratio is 29.91%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages recently weighed in on ALLE. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price objective on shares of Allegion from $140.00 to $135.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, February 19th. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Allegion from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 25th. Barclays reduced their price objective on Allegion from $134.00 to $130.00 and set an “underweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, February 19th. Robert W. Baird decreased their target price on Allegion from $152.00 to $144.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, February 19th. Finally, Morgan Stanley upped their price target on Allegion from $137.00 to $139.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 19th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have assigned a hold rating and one has assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Allegion presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $138.33.

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.