LPL Financial LLC Raises Stake in Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ)

LPL Financial LLC lifted its position in shares of Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ) by 10.2% during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm owned 3,714,260 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 344,641 shares during the period. LPL Financial LLC owned 0.15% of Johnson & Johnson worth $601,933,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. International Assets Investment Management LLC grew its position in shares of Johnson & Johnson by 20,130.0% in the third quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 3,454,473 shares of the company’s stock valued at $559,832,000 after purchasing an additional 3,437,397 shares during the period. Marshall Wace LLP grew its holdings in Johnson & Johnson by 506.9% in the 2nd quarter. Marshall Wace LLP now owns 3,884,962 shares of the company’s stock valued at $567,826,000 after buying an additional 3,244,862 shares during the period. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD increased its stake in shares of Johnson & Johnson by 16.8% during the 1st quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 21,834,359 shares of the company’s stock valued at $3,453,978,000 after acquiring an additional 3,139,499 shares during the last quarter. Ninety One UK Ltd lifted its holdings in shares of Johnson & Johnson by 59.0% during the 2nd quarter. Ninety One UK Ltd now owns 6,708,943 shares of the company’s stock worth $980,579,000 after acquiring an additional 2,489,925 shares during the period. Finally, Swedbank AB purchased a new stake in Johnson & Johnson in the first quarter valued at approximately $331,178,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 69.55% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts have weighed in on the stock. StockNews.com raised shares of Johnson & Johnson from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Saturday, September 14th. Wolfe Research initiated coverage on Johnson & Johnson in a report on Friday, November 15th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $190.00 target price on the stock. Morgan Stanley upped their price target on Johnson & Johnson from $169.00 to $175.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 16th. Cantor Fitzgerald reaffirmed an “overweight” rating and issued a $215.00 price objective on shares of Johnson & Johnson in a research note on Wednesday, October 16th. Finally, Citigroup raised their price target on shares of Johnson & Johnson from $180.00 to $185.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 16th. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eight 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 company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $175.94.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, VP Robert J. Decker sold 5,635 shares of the 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 sale, the vice president now owns 18,973 shares in the company, valued at $3,131,683.38. This represents a 22.90 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. 0.16% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Johnson & Johnson Stock Performance

Johnson & Johnson stock opened at $153.10 on Thursday. The company has a current ratio of 1.03, a quick ratio of 0.79 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.45. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $160.59 and a 200-day moving average of $156.17. The stock has a market cap of $368.59 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.16, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.72 and a beta of 0.53. Johnson & Johnson has a 52 week low of $143.13 and a 52 week high of $168.85.

Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, October 15th. The company reported $2.42 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.21 by $0.21. Johnson & Johnson had a net margin of 19.14% and a return on equity of 35.45%. The business had revenue of $22.47 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $22.17 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $2.66 earnings per share. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 5.2% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, analysts expect that Johnson & Johnson will post 9.93 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Johnson & Johnson Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 10th. Investors of record on Tuesday, November 26th will be given a dividend of $1.24 per share. This represents a $4.96 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.24%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, November 26th. Johnson & Johnson’s dividend payout ratio is currently 71.78%.

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.