Vista Capital Partners Inc. Reduces Holdings in Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ)

Vista Capital Partners Inc. cut its stake in Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ) by 2.7% in the second quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 5,340 shares of the company’s stock after selling 150 shares during the period. Vista Capital Partners Inc.’s holdings in Johnson & Johnson were worth $780,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of JNJ. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in shares of Johnson & Johnson during the fourth quarter worth $4,071,642,000. Wellington Management Group LLP increased its holdings in shares of Johnson & Johnson by 16.4% in the fourth quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 24,019,725 shares of the company’s stock valued at $3,764,852,000 after purchasing an additional 3,391,657 shares during the period. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD raised its stake in shares of Johnson & Johnson by 16.8% in the first quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 21,834,359 shares of the company’s stock worth $3,453,978,000 after purchasing an additional 3,139,499 shares during the last quarter. American Century Companies Inc. boosted its position in Johnson & Johnson by 5.8% in the second quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 8,014,213 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,171,357,000 after buying an additional 437,637 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Ninety One UK Ltd increased its holdings in Johnson & Johnson by 59.0% in the 2nd quarter. Ninety One UK Ltd now owns 6,708,943 shares of the company’s stock worth $980,579,000 after buying an additional 2,489,925 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 69.55% of the company’s stock.

Johnson & Johnson Trading Up 0.5 %

JNJ stock opened at $165.52 on Friday. Johnson & Johnson has a 12-month low of $143.13 and a 12-month high of $168.85. The business’s 50-day moving average is $159.55 and its 200 day moving average is $153.99. The company has a current ratio of 1.07, a quick ratio of 0.85 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.44. The stock has a market cap of $398.45 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.32, a PEG ratio of 2.71 and a beta of 0.53.

Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 17th. The company reported $2.82 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.71 by $0.11. Johnson & Johnson had a return on equity of 36.60% and a net margin of 46.34%. The firm had revenue of $22.45 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $22.33 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $2.80 earnings per share. The business’s revenue was up 4.3% on a year-over-year basis. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Johnson & Johnson will post 10.02 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Johnson & Johnson Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, September 10th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, August 27th were given a $1.24 dividend. This represents a $4.96 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.00%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, August 27th. Johnson & Johnson’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 30.92%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms have issued reports on JNJ. TD Securities reduced their price target on shares of Johnson & Johnson from $195.00 to $185.00 in a research report on Thursday, July 18th. TD Cowen lowered their price target on shares of Johnson & Johnson from $195.00 to $185.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, July 18th. Royal Bank of Canada reiterated an “outperform” rating and set a $175.00 price objective on shares of Johnson & Johnson in a research note on Tuesday, July 30th. Daiwa Capital Markets downgraded Johnson & Johnson from an “outperform” rating to a “neutral” rating and lowered their target price for the stock from $160.00 to $150.00 in a research note on Tuesday, July 23rd. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein lifted their price target on Johnson & Johnson from $161.00 to $171.00 in a research report on Thursday, July 18th. 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 company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $173.21.

Insider Transactions at Johnson & Johnson

In related news, VP Robert J. Decker sold 5,635 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $165.06, for a total transaction of $930,113.10. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now owns 18,973 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,131,683.38. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. 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.