Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ) Shares Sold by Benedict Financial Advisors Inc.

Benedict Financial Advisors Inc. lessened its stake in Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ) by 0.2% in the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 62,005 shares of the company’s stock after selling 126 shares during the quarter. Johnson & Johnson accounts for about 2.3% of Benedict Financial Advisors Inc.’s portfolio, making the stock its 5th largest holding. Benedict Financial Advisors Inc.’s holdings in Johnson & Johnson were worth $9,063,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. Innealta Capital LLC acquired a new position in shares of Johnson & Johnson in the 2nd quarter valued at about $27,000. Christopher J. Hasenberg Inc purchased a new position in shares of Johnson & Johnson in the 1st quarter valued at about $31,000. MFA Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Johnson & Johnson in the 2nd quarter valued at about $43,000. Vermillion & White Wealth Management Group LLC purchased a new position in shares of Johnson & Johnson in the 4th quarter valued at about $44,000. Finally, Grayhawk Investment Strategies Inc. increased its stake in shares of Johnson & Johnson by 528.6% in the 4th quarter. Grayhawk Investment Strategies Inc. now owns 308 shares of the company’s stock valued at $48,000 after purchasing an additional 259 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 69.55% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages recently weighed in on JNJ. Daiwa America lowered Johnson & Johnson from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 23rd. Daiwa Capital Markets lowered Johnson & Johnson from an “outperform” rating to a “neutral” rating and cut their price target for the company from $160.00 to $150.00 in a research note on Tuesday, July 23rd. TD Securities cut their price target on Johnson & Johnson from $195.00 to $185.00 in a research note 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. Finally, Cantor Fitzgerald reiterated an “overweight” rating and set a $215.00 price objective on shares of Johnson & Johnson in a research note on Monday, August 5th. Seven equities research 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. According to MarketBeat.com, Johnson & Johnson has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $173.21.

Johnson & Johnson Price Performance

Shares of JNJ stock traded up $1.63 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $165.86. The company had a trading volume of 7,971,017 shares, compared to its average volume of 7,271,470. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.44, a quick ratio of 0.85 and a current ratio of 1.07. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $155.68 and a 200-day moving average of $153.51. The company has a market capitalization of $399.17 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.34, a PEG ratio of 2.63 and a beta of 0.52. Johnson & Johnson has a 12-month low of $143.13 and a 12-month high of $165.98.

Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 17th. The company reported $2.82 EPS for the quarter, beating 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 analysts’ expectations of $22.33 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $2.80 earnings per share. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 4.3% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities analysts anticipate that Johnson & Johnson will post 10.07 earnings per share for the current year.

Johnson & Johnson Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 10th. Investors of record on Tuesday, August 27th will be issued a $1.24 dividend. This represents a $4.96 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.99%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, August 27th. Johnson & Johnson’s dividend payout ratio is presently 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.