Clifford Swan Investment Counsel LLC Sells 137 Shares of Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ)

Clifford Swan Investment Counsel LLC lessened its position in Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ) by 0.1% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 255,552 shares of the company’s stock after selling 137 shares during the period. Johnson & Johnson accounts for about 1.6% of Clifford Swan Investment Counsel LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its 11th biggest holding. Clifford Swan Investment Counsel LLC’s holdings in Johnson & Johnson were worth $40,055,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in JNJ. Metis Global Partners LLC raised its position in Johnson & Johnson by 17.6% during the 4th quarter. Metis Global Partners LLC now owns 134,156 shares of the company’s stock worth $21,028,000 after purchasing an additional 20,102 shares during the last quarter. Gallacher Capital Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of Johnson & Johnson by 39.0% in the fourth quarter. Gallacher Capital Management LLC now owns 3,570 shares of the company’s stock worth $560,000 after acquiring an additional 1,001 shares during the period. Channing Capital Management LLC boosted its holdings in Johnson & Johnson by 5.3% in the fourth quarter. Channing Capital Management LLC now owns 53,142 shares of the company’s stock valued at $8,329,000 after acquiring an additional 2,692 shares during the last quarter. Sheets Smith Wealth Management increased its position in Johnson & Johnson by 11.6% during the 4th quarter. Sheets Smith Wealth Management now owns 13,821 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,166,000 after purchasing an additional 1,432 shares during the period. Finally, Clearstead Trust LLC raised its holdings in Johnson & Johnson by 8.6% during the 4th quarter. Clearstead Trust LLC now owns 34,801 shares of the company’s stock worth $5,455,000 after purchasing an additional 2,770 shares during the last quarter. 69.55% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Johnson & Johnson Stock Performance

Shares of JNJ opened at $149.85 on Friday. Johnson & Johnson has a 52 week low of $143.13 and a 52 week high of $175.97. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.36, a quick ratio of 0.94 and a current ratio of 1.17. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $153.45 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $154.93. The firm has a market capitalization of $360.64 billion, a P/E ratio of 9.34, a P/E/G ratio of 2.46 and a beta of 0.55.

Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 16th. The company reported $2.71 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.64 by $0.07. The business had revenue of $21.38 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $21.39 billion. Johnson & Johnson had a return on equity of 36.70% and a net margin of 45.26%. Johnson & Johnson’s quarterly revenue was up 2.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $2.68 EPS. Equities analysts forecast that Johnson & Johnson will post 10.65 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Johnson & Johnson Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, June 4th. Investors of record on Tuesday, May 21st will be issued a dividend of $1.24 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, May 20th. This is a boost from Johnson & Johnson’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.19. This represents a $4.96 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.31%. Johnson & Johnson’s payout ratio is 30.92%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

JNJ has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. Bank of America decreased their price objective on shares of Johnson & Johnson from $180.00 to $170.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, April 17th. StockNews.com raised Johnson & Johnson from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 6th. Morgan Stanley dropped their price target on Johnson & Johnson from $168.00 to $167.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, April 17th. HSBC raised shares of Johnson & Johnson from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and raised their price objective for the stock from $169.00 to $170.00 in a research report on Thursday, April 18th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada dropped their target price on shares of Johnson & Johnson from $181.00 to $175.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, April 17th. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, six have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $175.86.

Insider Buying and Selling at Johnson & Johnson

In related news, major shareholder & Johnson Johnson sold 3,725 shares of Johnson & Johnson stock in a transaction on Friday, February 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $25.81, for a total transaction of $96,142.25. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 4,099,575 shares in the company, valued at $105,810,030.75. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Company insiders own 0.16% of the company’s stock.

Johnson & Johnson Company Profile

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.