Mediolanum International Funds Ltd Buys 52,199 Shares of Johnson & Johnson $JNJ

Mediolanum International Funds Ltd raised its stake in Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ) by 14.0% during the second quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The fund owned 426,141 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 52,199 shares during the period. Johnson & Johnson comprises approximately 0.8% of Mediolanum International Funds Ltd’s holdings, making the stock its 20th largest position. Mediolanum International Funds Ltd’s holdings in Johnson & Johnson were worth $64,948,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other large investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. GFG Capital LLC purchased a new position in Johnson & Johnson in the second quarter worth about $35,000. Stone House Investment Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Johnson & Johnson during the first quarter valued at approximately $47,000. 1248 Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Johnson & Johnson during the first quarter valued at approximately $48,000. Harvest Fund Management Co. Ltd bought a new position in Johnson & Johnson in the 1st quarter valued at approximately $52,000. Finally, Pandora Wealth Inc. purchased a new stake in Johnson & Johnson during the 1st quarter valued at $65,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 69.55% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity at Johnson & Johnson

In other news, EVP Jennifer L. Taubert sold 56,471 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, September 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $177.81, for a total value of $10,041,108.51. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 178,013 shares in the company, valued at $31,652,491.53. This represents a 24.08% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this link. 0.16% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Johnson & Johnson Trading Up 0.4%

Shares of NYSE:JNJ opened at $203.29 on Friday. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $187.74 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $171.22. The stock has a market capitalization of $489.77 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.62, a PEG ratio of 2.19 and a beta of 0.38. Johnson & Johnson has a 52-week low of $140.68 and a 52-week high of $204.51. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.50, a quick ratio of 0.80 and a current ratio of 1.07.

Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, August 30th. The company reported $2.26 earnings per share for the quarter. The firm had revenue of $24.02 billion for the quarter. Johnson & Johnson had a net margin of 27.26% and a return on equity of 32.73%. Analysts expect that Johnson & Johnson will post 10.58 EPS for the current year.

Johnson & Johnson Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 9th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, November 25th will be given a dividend of $1.30 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, November 25th. This represents a $5.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.6%. Johnson & Johnson’s payout ratio is presently 50.19%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms have recently weighed in on JNJ. Wells Fargo & Company set a $212.00 price target on Johnson & Johnson and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, October 3rd. Scotiabank began coverage on Johnson & Johnson in a report on Thursday, November 13th. They issued a “sector outperform” rating and a $230.00 price objective for the company. Daiwa Capital Markets upgraded shares of Johnson & Johnson from a “neutral” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $203.00 target price on the stock in a research note on Monday, October 20th. Argus set a $210.00 price target on shares of Johnson & Johnson in a report on Wednesday, October 15th. Finally, Guggenheim raised shares of Johnson & Johnson from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and boosted their price objective for the company from $167.00 to $206.00 in a report on Tuesday, September 23rd. Four analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirteen have given a Buy rating and nine have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $201.05.

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.