Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ) Trading 0.5% Higher

Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ)’s share price rose 0.5% during mid-day trading on Thursday . The stock traded as high as $145.60 and last traded at $145.47. Approximately 2,412,858 shares traded hands during trading, a decline of 66% from the average daily volume of 7,151,962 shares. The stock had previously closed at $144.77.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms have issued reports on JNJ. StockNews.com raised Johnson & Johnson from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 6th. Cantor Fitzgerald reaffirmed an “overweight” rating and set a $215.00 target price on shares of Johnson & Johnson in a research note on Monday, April 15th. Morgan Stanley reduced their price target on shares of Johnson & Johnson from $168.00 to $167.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday. HSBC raised shares of Johnson & Johnson from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and increased their price objective for the stock from $169.00 to $170.00 in a research report on Thursday. Finally, Bank of America lowered their price target on Johnson & Johnson from $180.00 to $170.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, six have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $175.86.

Johnson & Johnson Trading Up 1.5 %

The firm has a market capitalization of $356.48 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 9.22, a PEG ratio of 2.40 and a beta of 0.53. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.38, a quick ratio of 0.91 and a current ratio of 1.16. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $156.15 and a 200-day moving average price of $155.63.

Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 16th. The company reported $2.71 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.64 by $0.07. The company had revenue of $21.38 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $21.39 billion. Johnson & Johnson had a net margin of 45.26% and a return on equity of 36.43%. The firm’s revenue was up 2.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $2.68 earnings per share. As a group, research analysts forecast that Johnson & Johnson will post 10.65 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Johnson & Johnson Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, June 4th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, May 21st will be paid a $1.24 dividend. This represents a $4.96 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.35%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, May 20th. This is an increase from Johnson & Johnson’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.19. Johnson & Johnson’s dividend payout ratio is currently 29.68%.

Insider Transactions at Johnson & Johnson

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

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Johnson & Johnson

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. DORCHESTER WEALTH MANAGEMENT Co boosted its holdings in Johnson & Johnson by 8.6% during the first quarter. DORCHESTER WEALTH MANAGEMENT Co now owns 67,618 shares of the company’s stock worth $14,975,000 after buying an additional 5,327 shares in the last quarter. Cantor Fitzgerald Investment Advisor L.P increased its stake in Johnson & Johnson by 88.9% in the 1st quarter. Cantor Fitzgerald Investment Advisor L.P now owns 175,194 shares of the company’s stock valued at $31,049,000 after purchasing an additional 82,429 shares in the last quarter. AMI Investment Management Inc. raised its holdings in Johnson & Johnson by 8.8% during the first quarter. AMI Investment Management Inc. now owns 18,305 shares of the company’s stock worth $3,244,000 after purchasing an additional 1,475 shares during the last quarter. Equitable Holdings Inc. grew its holdings in Johnson & Johnson by 4.9% in the first quarter. Equitable Holdings Inc. now owns 45,673 shares of the company’s stock valued at $8,095,000 after purchasing an additional 2,119 shares during the last quarter. Finally, USS Investment Management Ltd increased its position in shares of Johnson & Johnson by 2.4% in the first quarter. USS Investment Management Ltd now owns 860,371 shares of the company’s stock valued at $152,488,000 after buying an additional 20,528 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 69.55% of the company’s stock.

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.