Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ) Stock Price Down 0.1% – Should You Sell?

Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ) traded down 0.1% on Friday . The company traded as low as $155.92 and last traded at $156.51. 996,246 shares changed hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 86% from the average session volume of 6,955,606 shares. The stock had previously closed at $156.73.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

JNJ has been the subject of several analyst reports. TD Securities decreased their target price on shares of Johnson & Johnson from $195.00 to $185.00 in a research note on Thursday, July 18th. Daiwa America downgraded Johnson & Johnson from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, July 23rd. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price target on shares of Johnson & Johnson from $163.00 to $166.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 16th. Sanford C. Bernstein raised their price objective on shares of Johnson & Johnson from $161.00 to $171.00 in a report on Thursday, July 18th. Finally, Daiwa Capital Markets downgraded Johnson & Johnson from an “outperform” rating to a “neutral” rating and decreased their price target for the stock from $160.00 to $150.00 in a research note on Tuesday, July 23rd. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seven have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $175.00.

Johnson & Johnson Price Performance

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.45, a quick ratio of 0.79 and a current ratio of 1.03. The company has a market cap of $374.31 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.65, a PEG ratio of 2.81 and a beta of 0.53. The company’s 50 day moving average price is $162.96 and its 200-day moving average price is $155.76.

Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, October 15th. The company reported $2.42 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.21 by $0.21. The company had revenue of $22.47 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $22.17 billion. Johnson & Johnson had a return on equity of 35.45% and a net margin of 19.14%. The business’s revenue was up 5.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the company earned $2.66 earnings per share. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Johnson & Johnson will post 9.94 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Johnson & Johnson Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 10th. Investors of record on Tuesday, November 26th will be given a dividend of $1.24 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, November 26th. This represents a $4.96 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.19%. Johnson & Johnson’s dividend payout ratio is presently 71.78%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Johnson & Johnson

In related news, VP Robert J. Decker sold 5,635 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, August 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $165.06, for a total transaction of $930,113.10. Following the transaction, the vice president now owns 18,973 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,131,683.38. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Insiders own 0.16% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Johnson & Johnson

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of JNJ. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD increased its stake in shares of Johnson & Johnson by 16.8% in the first quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 21,834,359 shares of the company’s stock valued at $3,453,978,000 after buying an additional 3,139,499 shares in the last quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA lifted its holdings in Johnson & Johnson by 10.8% during the 2nd quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 18,780,645 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,744,979,000 after buying an additional 1,831,751 shares in the last quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. boosted its position in Johnson & Johnson by 5.5% in the 2nd quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 14,374,397 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,100,427,000 after buying an additional 754,200 shares during the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP increased its stake in shares of Johnson & Johnson by 16.2% in the 2nd quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 13,147,352 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,921,565,000 after buying an additional 1,829,257 shares during the period. Finally, American Century Companies Inc. raised its holdings in Johnson & Johnson by 5.8% during the 2nd quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 8,014,213 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,171,357,000 after purchasing an additional 437,637 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors 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.