Applied Finance Capital Management LLC Sells 821 Shares of Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ)

Applied Finance Capital Management LLC lowered its stake in shares of Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ) by 2.8% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 28,591 shares of the company’s stock after selling 821 shares during the period. Applied Finance Capital Management LLC’s holdings in Johnson & Johnson were worth $4,135,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in JNJ. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its stake in Johnson & Johnson by 0.8% in the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 232,792,559 shares of the company’s stock valued at $33,666,460,000 after acquiring an additional 1,772,706 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its stake in Johnson & Johnson by 2.8% in the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 57,667,920 shares of the company’s stock valued at $8,321,881,000 after purchasing an additional 1,561,036 shares during the last quarter. Norges Bank bought a new position in Johnson & Johnson during the fourth quarter worth about $4,390,037,000. Wellington Management Group LLP increased its position in Johnson & Johnson by 1.8% during the fourth quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 24,356,572 shares of the company’s stock worth $3,522,447,000 after buying an additional 431,205 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Invesco Ltd. raised its stake in Johnson & Johnson by 6.5% in the fourth quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 19,126,079 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,766,014,000 after buying an additional 1,171,975 shares during the period. 69.55% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts recently weighed in on JNJ shares. Barclays boosted their target price on Johnson & Johnson from $159.00 to $166.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Tuesday, January 28th. Argus upgraded shares of Johnson & Johnson to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Friday, January 24th. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Johnson & Johnson from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Saturday, January 25th. Bank of America increased their price target on shares of Johnson & Johnson from $159.00 to $171.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, March 5th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus decreased their target price on Johnson & Johnson from $170.00 to $155.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, January 23rd. Nine equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have assigned a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Johnson & Johnson currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $171.33.

Insider Activity at Johnson & Johnson

In related news, VP Robert J. Decker sold 6,999 shares of Johnson & Johnson stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $165.88, for a total transaction of $1,160,994.12. Following the sale, the vice president now directly owns 21,001 shares in the company, valued at $3,483,645.88. This trade represents a 25.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, EVP Timothy Schmid sold 403 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $156.15, for a total transaction of $62,928.45. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 15,098 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,357,552.70. This represents a 2.60 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.16% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Johnson & Johnson Price Performance

JNJ stock opened at $150.47 on Tuesday. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $159.70 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $155.66. Johnson & Johnson has a 12 month low of $140.68 and a 12 month high of $169.99. The company has a quick ratio of 0.86, a current ratio of 1.11 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.43. The firm has a market cap of $362.60 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.63, a P/E/G ratio of 2.56 and a beta of 0.49.

Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, January 22nd. The company reported $2.04 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.99 by $0.05. Johnson & Johnson had a return on equity of 34.24% and a net margin of 18.20%. The business had revenue of $22.52 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $22.44 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $2.29 EPS. Johnson & Johnson’s revenue for the quarter was up 5.3% on a year-over-year basis. On average, analysts anticipate that Johnson & Johnson will post 10.58 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Johnson & Johnson Company Profile

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.