Steph & Co. Sells 1,294 Shares of Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ)

Steph & Co. lessened its holdings in Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ) by 23.0% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 4,320 shares of the company’s stock after selling 1,294 shares during the quarter. Steph & Co.’s holdings in Johnson & Johnson were worth $677,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Keener Financial Planning LLC acquired a new position in Johnson & Johnson during the fourth quarter worth $40,000. Tower View Wealth Management LLC increased its holdings in Johnson & Johnson by 183.3% during the third quarter. Tower View Wealth Management LLC now owns 255 shares of the company’s stock worth $40,000 after buying an additional 165 shares during the last quarter. Creative Capital Management Investments LLC increased its holdings in Johnson & Johnson by 43.0% during the third quarter. Creative Capital Management Investments LLC now owns 286 shares of the company’s stock worth $45,000 after buying an additional 86 shares during the last quarter. Altshuler Shaham Ltd increased its holdings in Johnson & Johnson by 37.8% during the third quarter. Altshuler Shaham Ltd now owns 317 shares of the company’s stock worth $49,000 after buying an additional 87 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Mizuho Securities Co. Ltd. increased its holdings in Johnson & Johnson by 216.7% during the third quarter. Mizuho Securities Co. Ltd. now owns 380 shares of the company’s stock worth $59,000 after buying an additional 260 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 69.55% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts recently weighed in on JNJ shares. Raymond James boosted their target price on shares of Johnson & Johnson from $172.00 to $175.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 3rd. Morgan Stanley decreased their price objective on shares of Johnson & Johnson from $168.00 to $167.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, April 17th. Royal Bank of Canada decreased their price objective on shares of 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 decreased their price objective on shares of Johnson & Johnson from $180.00 to $170.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, April 17th. Finally, HSBC upgraded shares of Johnson & Johnson from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and upped their price objective for the company from $169.00 to $170.00 in a report on Thursday, April 18th. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, six have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Johnson & Johnson presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $175.86.

Insider Transactions at Johnson & Johnson

In other news, EVP Jennifer L. Taubert sold 59,397 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $156.27, for a total value 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 $22,099,078.32. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. In other news, EVP Jennifer L. Taubert sold 59,397 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $156.27, for a total value 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 $22,099,078.32. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, major shareholder & Johnson Johnson sold 3,725 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $25.81, for a total transaction of $96,142.25. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 4,099,575 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $105,810,030.75. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 0.16% of the company’s stock.

Johnson & Johnson Trading Up 0.3 %

JNJ opened at $149.56 on Wednesday. Johnson & Johnson has a twelve month low of $143.13 and a twelve month high of $175.97. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $155.83 and a 200 day simple moving average of $155.51. The company has a quick ratio of 0.91, a current ratio of 1.16 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.38. The stock has a market capitalization of $360.41 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 9.32, a P/E/G ratio of 2.44 and a beta of 0.53.

Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, April 16th. The company reported $2.71 earnings per share 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 business had revenue of $21.38 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $21.39 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $2.68 earnings per share. Johnson & Johnson’s revenue was up 2.3% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts predict that Johnson & Johnson will post 10.65 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Johnson & Johnson Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, June 4th. Investors of record on Tuesday, May 21st will be given a dividend of $1.24 per share. This is a boost from Johnson & Johnson’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.19. The ex-dividend date is Monday, May 20th. This represents a $4.96 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.32%. Johnson & Johnson’s dividend payout ratio is currently 30.92%.

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.