Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ) Shares Sold by Optas LLC

Optas LLC decreased its position in Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ) by 23.1% in the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 5,187 shares of the company’s stock after selling 1,559 shares during the quarter. Optas LLC’s holdings in Johnson & Johnson were worth $758,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in JNJ. Christopher J. Hasenberg Inc acquired a new stake in shares of Johnson & Johnson during the first quarter worth $31,000. MFA Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new position in Johnson & Johnson in the second quarter worth about $43,000. Vermillion & White Wealth Management Group LLC acquired a new position in Johnson & Johnson in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $44,000. Disciplined Equity Management Inc. bought a new position in shares of Johnson & Johnson during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $45,000. Finally, Grayhawk Investment Strategies Inc. raised its position in shares of Johnson & Johnson by 528.6% during the 4th quarter. Grayhawk Investment Strategies Inc. now owns 308 shares of the company’s stock worth $48,000 after purchasing an additional 259 shares during the period. 69.55% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Johnson & Johnson Trading Up 1.1 %

Shares of NYSE:JNJ traded up $1.78 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $164.13. The company had a trading volume of 7,093,429 shares, compared to its average volume of 7,299,449. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $153.92 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $153.24. The firm has a market cap of $395.01 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.23, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.63 and a beta of 0.52. Johnson & Johnson has a 1-year low of $143.13 and a 1-year high of $167.78. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.44, a quick ratio of 0.85 and a current ratio of 1.07.

Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, July 17th. The company reported $2.82 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.71 by $0.11. The business had revenue of $22.45 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $22.33 billion. Johnson & Johnson had a net margin of 46.34% and a return on equity of 36.60%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 4.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the firm posted $2.80 earnings per share. Research analysts predict that Johnson & Johnson will post 10.07 earnings per share for the current year.

Johnson & Johnson Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 10th. Investors of record on Tuesday, August 27th will be given a dividend of $1.24 per share. This represents a $4.96 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.02%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, August 27th. Johnson & Johnson’s payout ratio is 30.92%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages recently commented on JNJ. The Goldman Sachs Group lowered their price objective on Johnson & Johnson from $160.00 to $155.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, July 19th. Royal Bank of Canada reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and issued a $175.00 price objective on shares of Johnson & Johnson in a report on Tuesday, July 30th. Morgan Stanley boosted their target price on shares of Johnson & Johnson from $167.00 to $169.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Thursday, July 18th. Sanford C. Bernstein lifted their price target on Johnson & Johnson from $161.00 to $171.00 in a report on Thursday, July 18th. Finally, Daiwa Capital Markets cut Johnson & Johnson from an “outperform” rating to a “neutral” rating and lowered their target price for the company from $160.00 to $150.00 in a research report on Tuesday, July 23rd. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, six have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $173.21.

Johnson & Johnson 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.