Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ) Trading Down 0.2% – Should You Sell?

Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ)’s share price traded down 0.2% on Monday . The stock traded as low as $150.78 and last traded at $151.78. 1,277,160 shares traded hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 86% from the average session volume of 9,227,427 shares. The stock had previously closed at $152.15.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts have issued reports on JNJ shares. Citigroup lowered their price objective on Johnson & Johnson from $185.00 to $175.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, December 11th. StockNews.com raised Johnson & Johnson from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Saturday, January 25th. Royal Bank of Canada reissued an “outperform” rating and set a $181.00 price objective on shares of Johnson & Johnson in a research report on Thursday, January 23rd. Stifel Nicolaus decreased their target price on shares of Johnson & Johnson from $170.00 to $155.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, January 23rd. Finally, Morgan Stanley reduced their price target on shares of Johnson & Johnson from $175.00 to $163.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, January 23rd. Nine research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have issued a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Johnson & Johnson presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $170.67.

Johnson & Johnson Stock Down 0.2 %

The company’s 50-day simple moving average is $147.61 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $156.12. The firm has a market capitalization of $365.53 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.83, a P/E/G ratio of 2.44 and a beta of 0.52. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.45, a current ratio of 1.03 and a quick ratio of 0.79.

Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, January 22nd. The company reported $2.04 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.99 by $0.05. The company had revenue of $22.52 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $22.44 billion. Johnson & Johnson had a return on equity of 34.35% and a net margin of 18.20%. Johnson & Johnson’s quarterly revenue was up 5.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $2.29 earnings per share. As a group, research analysts expect that Johnson & Johnson will post 10.58 earnings per share for the current year.

Johnson & Johnson Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, March 4th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, February 18th will be paid a dividend of $1.24 per share. This represents a $4.96 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.27%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, February 18th. Johnson & Johnson’s payout ratio is 74.59%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Johnson & Johnson news, Director Mark A. Weinberger acquired 1,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, December 12th. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $147.22 per share, for a total transaction of $147,220.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 1,000 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $147,220. The trade was a ∞ increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Company insiders own 0.16% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Powers Advisory Group LLC lifted its stake in shares of Johnson & Johnson by 0.6% during the third quarter. Powers Advisory Group LLC now owns 9,489 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,538,000 after acquiring an additional 61 shares during the period. Eagle Wealth Strategies LLC lifted its position in Johnson & Johnson by 2.8% during the 3rd quarter. Eagle Wealth Strategies LLC now owns 2,294 shares of the company’s stock valued at $372,000 after purchasing an additional 63 shares during the period. Knuff & Co LLC boosted its stake in shares of Johnson & Johnson by 0.7% in the 3rd quarter. Knuff & Co LLC now owns 9,466 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,534,000 after purchasing an additional 64 shares during the last quarter. Perkins Coie Trust Co grew its position in shares of Johnson & Johnson by 1.8% during the 3rd quarter. Perkins Coie Trust Co now owns 3,705 shares of the company’s stock worth $600,000 after buying an additional 65 shares during the period. Finally, Vertex Planning Partners LLC raised its stake in shares of Johnson & Johnson by 1.3% during the third quarter. Vertex Planning Partners LLC now owns 5,211 shares of the company’s stock worth $844,000 after buying an additional 65 shares during the last quarter. 69.55% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Johnson & Johnson

Johnson & Johnson is a holding company, which engages in the research, development, manufacture, and sale of products in the healthcare field. It operates through the Innovative Medicine and MedTech segments. The Innovative Medicine segment focuses on immunology, infectious diseases, neuroscience, oncology, cardiovascular and metabolism, and pulmonary hypertension.