Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ) Receives “Neutral” Rating from Guggenheim

Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ)‘s stock had its “neutral” rating reissued by stock analysts at Guggenheim in a research report issued on Monday,Benzinga reports.

A number of other equities research analysts also recently weighed in on JNJ. Raymond James lowered their target price on shares of Johnson & Johnson from $170.00 to $165.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, January 23rd. Argus raised shares of Johnson & Johnson to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Friday, January 24th. Morgan Stanley reduced their target price on Johnson & Johnson from $175.00 to $163.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, January 23rd. Citigroup dropped their price target on Johnson & Johnson from $185.00 to $175.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, December 11th. Finally, Wolfe Research initiated coverage on Johnson & Johnson in a research report on Friday, November 15th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $190.00 price objective on the stock. Nine equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have issued a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $171.33.

Johnson & Johnson Stock Performance

Johnson & Johnson stock traded up $2.09 during mid-day trading on Monday, reaching $168.78. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 6,033,610 shares, compared to its average volume of 9,243,893. The company has a market capitalization of $406.36 billion, a P/E ratio of 25.38, a PEG ratio of 2.56 and a beta of 0.47. Johnson & Johnson has a 12-month low of $140.68 and a 12-month high of $169.99. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.43, a quick ratio of 0.86 and a current ratio of 1.11. The firm’s fifty day moving average price is $152.95 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $156.24.

Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, January 22nd. The company reported $2.04 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.99 by $0.05. Johnson & Johnson had a net margin of 18.20% and a return on equity of 34.24%. The company had revenue of $22.52 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $22.44 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $2.29 earnings per share. Johnson & Johnson’s revenue for the quarter was up 5.3% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts predict that Johnson & Johnson will post 10.58 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, VP Robert J. Decker sold 6,999 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $165.88, for a total value of $1,160,994.12. Following the sale, the vice president now directly owns 21,001 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,483,645.88. This represents a 25.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, Director Mark A. Weinberger acquired 1,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, December 12th. The stock was purchased at an average price of $147.22 per share, with a total value of $147,220.00. Following the acquisition, the director now owns 1,000 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $147,220. This represents a ∞ increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Company insiders own 0.16% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Johnson & Johnson

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of JNJ. Swedbank AB boosted its stake in Johnson & Johnson by 5.3% in the 3rd quarter. Swedbank AB now owns 2,215,108 shares of the company’s stock worth $358,980,000 after purchasing an additional 111,570 shares in the last quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. increased its position in shares of Johnson & Johnson by 10.5% during the third quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 3,472,312 shares of the company’s stock valued at $562,723,000 after acquiring an additional 329,473 shares in the last quarter. United Bank raised its holdings in Johnson & Johnson by 5.6% in the 3rd quarter. United Bank now owns 3,788 shares of the company’s stock worth $614,000 after acquiring an additional 202 shares during the last quarter. Assetmark Inc. lifted its position in Johnson & Johnson by 16.6% in the 3rd quarter. Assetmark Inc. now owns 70,421 shares of the company’s stock valued at $11,412,000 after acquiring an additional 10,026 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Oxbow Advisors LLC increased its holdings in shares of Johnson & Johnson by 3.7% in the 3rd quarter. Oxbow Advisors LLC now owns 41,323 shares of the company’s stock worth $6,697,000 after purchasing an additional 1,474 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 69.55% of the company’s stock.

Johnson & Johnson Company Profile

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.