Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ) Shares Down 0.6%

Shares of Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ) dropped 0.6% on Tuesday . The company traded as low as $145.35 and last traded at $145.90. Approximately 2,035,400 shares were traded during mid-day trading, a decline of 72% from the average daily volume of 7,299,480 shares. The stock had previously closed at $146.82.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts have recently weighed in on JNJ shares. Royal Bank of Canada cut their price target on Johnson & Johnson from $181.00 to $175.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, April 17th. Bank of America cut their target price on shares of Johnson & Johnson from $180.00 to $170.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, April 17th. HSBC raised Johnson & Johnson from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and upped their price target for the company from $169.00 to $170.00 in a report on Thursday, April 18th. Raymond James upped their price objective on shares of Johnson & Johnson from $172.00 to $175.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 3rd. Finally, Cantor Fitzgerald restated an “overweight” rating and set a $215.00 price target on shares of Johnson & Johnson in a report on Monday, April 15th. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, six have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $175.86.

Johnson & Johnson Trading Down 1.2 %

The firm has a market capitalization of $349.42 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 9.10, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.41 and a beta of 0.53. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $155.07 and a 200-day moving average price of $155.23. The company has a current ratio of 1.16, a quick ratio of 0.91 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.38.

Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, April 16th. The company reported $2.71 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.64 by $0.07. Johnson & Johnson had a net margin of 45.26% and a return on equity of 36.43%. The company had revenue of $21.38 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $21.39 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $2.68 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 2.3% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities research analysts predict that Johnson & Johnson will post 10.65 EPS for the current year.

Johnson & Johnson Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, June 4th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, May 21st will be paid a dividend of $1.24 per share. This represents a $4.96 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.42%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend 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 29.68%.

Insider Activity at Johnson & Johnson

In other Johnson & Johnson news, EVP Jennifer L. Taubert sold 59,397 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred 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 in the company, valued at $22,099,078.32. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. In other Johnson & Johnson news, EVP Jennifer L. Taubert sold 59,397 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, February 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $156.27, for a total transaction of $9,281,969.19. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 141,416 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $22,099,078.32. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, major shareholder & Johnson Johnson sold 3,725 shares of the firm’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 in the company, valued at $105,810,030.75. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.16% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Johnson & Johnson

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of JNJ. Valued Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its stake in shares of Johnson & Johnson by 17.1% in the first quarter. Valued Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 590 shares of the company’s stock valued at $93,000 after buying an additional 86 shares during the period. Violich Capital Management Inc. lifted its position in shares of Johnson & Johnson by 4.5% in the 1st quarter. Violich Capital Management Inc. now owns 96,736 shares of the company’s stock worth $15,303,000 after acquiring an additional 4,162 shares during the period. BlueChip Wealth Advisors LLC grew its holdings in shares of Johnson & Johnson by 8.4% during the 1st quarter. BlueChip Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 2,439 shares of the company’s stock worth $386,000 after purchasing an additional 189 shares in the last quarter. Woodward Diversified Capital LLC raised its stake in shares of Johnson & Johnson by 5.7% in the first quarter. Woodward Diversified Capital LLC now owns 16,285 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,576,000 after purchasing an additional 879 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Concord Wealth Partners lifted its position in Johnson & Johnson by 9.1% in the first quarter. Concord Wealth Partners now owns 27,454 shares of the company’s stock worth $4,343,000 after purchasing an additional 2,292 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 69.55% of the company’s stock.

About Johnson & Johnson

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.