Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ) Shares Down 0.1% – What’s Next?

Shares of Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ) traded down 0.1% during trading on Thursday . The stock traded as low as $153.52 and last traded at $154.47. 1,195,864 shares were traded during mid-day trading, a decline of 87% from the average session volume of 9,132,420 shares. The stock had previously closed at $154.69.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts recently issued reports on JNJ shares. Bank of America reduced their target price on shares of Johnson & Johnson from $160.00 to $159.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, January 23rd. Guggenheim boosted their price objective on Johnson & Johnson from $162.00 to $166.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Monday, February 3rd. StockNews.com raised Johnson & Johnson from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Saturday, January 25th. Royal Bank of Canada reissued an “outperform” rating and issued a $181.00 price target on shares of Johnson & Johnson in a report on Thursday, January 23rd. Finally, Argus raised shares of Johnson & Johnson to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Friday, January 24th. Nine research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have assigned a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $170.67.

Johnson & Johnson Price Performance

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.45, a current ratio of 1.03 and a quick ratio of 0.79. The stock has a market capitalization of $368.61 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 23.02, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.46 and a beta of 0.52. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $147.42 and a 200-day moving average price of $156.06.

Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, January 22nd. The company reported $2.04 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.99 by $0.05. The company had revenue of $22.52 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $22.44 billion. Johnson & Johnson had a net margin of 18.20% and a return on equity of 34.35%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 5.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $2.29 EPS. On average, analysts forecast that Johnson & Johnson will post 10.58 earnings per share for the current year.

Johnson & Johnson Dividend Announcement

The firm 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 $1.24 dividend. This represents a $4.96 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.24%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, February 18th. Johnson & Johnson’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 74.59%.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director Mark A. Weinberger acquired 1,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, December 12th. The stock was purchased at an average price of $147.22 per share, with a total value of $147,220.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director now owns 1,000 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $147,220. This trade represents a ∞ increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Company insiders own 0.16% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in JNJ. AMF Tjanstepension AB lifted its position in shares of Johnson & Johnson by 14.2% during the 3rd quarter. AMF Tjanstepension AB now owns 425,261 shares of the company’s stock worth $68,985,000 after purchasing an additional 52,997 shares during the last quarter. Alpha Financial Partners LLC acquired a new position in shares of Johnson & Johnson during the 3rd quarter worth about $209,000. Wealth Group Ltd. purchased a new position in shares of Johnson & Johnson in the 3rd quarter valued at about $213,000. Quotient Wealth Partners LLC lifted its stake in Johnson & Johnson by 0.9% during the third quarter. Quotient Wealth Partners LLC now owns 13,347 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,163,000 after purchasing an additional 125 shares during the last quarter. Finally, GEM Asset Management LLC boosted its holdings in Johnson & Johnson by 8.4% in the third quarter. GEM Asset Management LLC now owns 3,137 shares of the company’s stock valued at $500,000 after purchasing an additional 242 shares in the last quarter. 69.55% of the stock is currently 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.