Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ) Receives Consensus Recommendation of “Hold” from Analysts

Shares of Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ) have earned a consensus recommendation of “Hold” from the twelve research firms that are presently covering the firm, Marketbeat.com reports. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating on the company. The average 1-year price objective among analysts that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $177.31.

JNJ has been the topic of several recent research reports. Raymond James increased their target price on shares of Johnson & Johnson from $172.00 to $175.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 3rd. Morgan Stanley decreased their price objective on shares of Johnson & Johnson from $170.00 to $169.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, January 24th. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Johnson & Johnson from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 6th. Royal Bank of Canada reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and set a $181.00 price objective on shares of Johnson & Johnson in a research note on Wednesday, February 28th. Finally, Cantor Fitzgerald reissued an “overweight” rating and issued a $215.00 price target on shares of Johnson & Johnson in a research note on Wednesday, March 13th.

Insider Activity at Johnson & Johnson

In related news, EVP Jennifer L. Taubert sold 59,397 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, February 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $156.27, for a total transaction of $9,281,969.19. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 141,416 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $22,099,078.32. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. In related news, major shareholder & Johnson Johnson sold 3,725 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $25.81, for a total transaction of $96,142.25. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 4,099,575 shares in the company, valued at $105,810,030.75. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, EVP Jennifer L. Taubert sold 59,397 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $156.27, for a total value of $9,281,969.19. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 141,416 shares in the company, valued at $22,099,078.32. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 0.16% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Johnson & Johnson

A number of large investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Hibernia Wealth Partners LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Johnson & Johnson in the third quarter valued at about $27,000. FNY Investment Advisers LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Johnson & Johnson in the third quarter valued at about $37,000. Tower View Wealth Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Johnson & Johnson by 183.3% in the third quarter. Tower View Wealth Management LLC now owns 255 shares of the company’s stock valued at $40,000 after buying an additional 165 shares in the last quarter. Keener Financial Planning LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Johnson & Johnson in the fourth quarter valued at about $40,000. Finally, WFA Asset Management Corp grew its stake in shares of Johnson & Johnson by 61.4% in the fourth quarter. WFA Asset Management Corp now owns 255 shares of the company’s stock valued at $40,000 after buying an additional 97 shares in the last quarter. 69.55% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Johnson & Johnson Trading Down 0.9 %

JNJ stock opened at $148.78 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.91, a current ratio of 1.16 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.38. Johnson & Johnson has a twelve month low of $144.95 and a twelve month high of $175.97. The stock has a market capitalization of $358.53 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.77, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.55 and a beta of 0.53. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $157.42 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $156.08.

Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, January 23rd. The company reported $2.29 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.28 by $0.01. The firm had revenue of $21.40 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $21.02 billion. Johnson & Johnson had a net margin of 37.79% and a return on equity of 37.27%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was down 9.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $2.35 earnings per share. As a group, analysts anticipate that Johnson & Johnson will post 10.65 earnings per share for the current year.

Johnson & Johnson Company Profile

Johnson & Johnson, together with its subsidiaries, researches, develops, manufactures, and sells various products in the healthcare field worldwide. The company's Innovative Medicine segment offers products for various therapeutic areas, such as immunology, including rheumatoid arthritis, psoriatic arthritis, inflammatory bowel disease, and psoriasis; infectious diseases comprising HIV/AIDS; neuroscience, consisting of mood disorders, neurodegenerative disorders, and schizophrenia; oncology, such as prostate cancer, hematologic malignancies, lung cancer, and bladder cancer; cardiovascular and metabolism, including thrombosis, diabetes, and macular degeneration; and pulmonary hypertension comprising pulmonary arterial hypertension through retailers, wholesalers, distributors, hospitals, and healthcare professionals for prescription use.