Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ) Shares Sold by Sound Financial Strategies Group LLC

Sound Financial Strategies Group LLC trimmed its stake in Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ) by 9.0% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 2,031 shares of the company’s stock after selling 201 shares during the quarter. Sound Financial Strategies Group LLC’s holdings in Johnson & Johnson were worth $318,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in JNJ. Tower View Wealth Management LLC grew its stake in Johnson & Johnson by 183.3% in the 3rd quarter. Tower View Wealth Management LLC now owns 255 shares of the company’s stock worth $40,000 after acquiring an additional 165 shares during the period. Keener Financial Planning LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Johnson & Johnson during the fourth quarter worth $40,000. WFA Asset Management Corp grew its position in shares of Johnson & Johnson by 61.4% in the fourth quarter. WFA Asset Management Corp now owns 255 shares of the company’s stock valued at $40,000 after purchasing an additional 97 shares during the period. Creative Capital Management Investments LLC increased its stake in Johnson & Johnson by 43.0% in the third quarter. Creative Capital Management Investments LLC now owns 286 shares of the company’s stock valued at $45,000 after purchasing an additional 86 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Altshuler Shaham Ltd lifted its position in Johnson & Johnson by 37.8% during the third quarter. Altshuler Shaham Ltd now owns 317 shares of the company’s stock worth $49,000 after buying an additional 87 shares during the period. 69.55% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts have commented on JNJ shares. Bank of America lowered their price target on Johnson & Johnson from $180.00 to $170.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, April 17th. Raymond James upped their price target on shares of Johnson & Johnson from $172.00 to $175.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 3rd. Cantor Fitzgerald reiterated an “overweight” rating and issued a $215.00 price target on shares of Johnson & Johnson in a report on Monday, April 15th. StockNews.com upgraded Johnson & Johnson from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 6th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada reduced their target price on Johnson & Johnson from $181.00 to $175.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, April 17th. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, six have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $175.86.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, EVP Jennifer L. Taubert sold 59,397 shares of Johnson & Johnson stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $156.27, for a total transaction of $9,281,969.19. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 141,416 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $22,099,078.32. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. In other Johnson & Johnson news, major shareholder & Johnson Johnson sold 3,725 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, February 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $25.81, for a total transaction of $96,142.25. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 4,099,575 shares in the company, valued at approximately $105,810,030.75. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, EVP Jennifer L. Taubert sold 59,397 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, February 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $156.27, for a total transaction of $9,281,969.19. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 141,416 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $22,099,078.32. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.16% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Johnson & Johnson Price Performance

Shares of NYSE JNJ opened at $146.84 on Tuesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.38, a current ratio of 1.16 and a quick ratio of 0.91. Johnson & Johnson has a 1-year low of $143.13 and a 1-year high of $175.97. The company has a market capitalization of $353.85 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 9.15, a PEG ratio of 2.41 and a beta of 0.53. The business has a 50-day moving average of $155.07 and a 200-day moving average of $155.23.

Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 16th. The company reported $2.71 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.64 by $0.07. The firm had revenue of $21.38 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $21.39 billion. Johnson & Johnson had a return on equity of 36.43% and a net margin of 45.26%. Johnson & Johnson’s quarterly revenue was up 2.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $2.68 EPS. On average, equities analysts anticipate that Johnson & Johnson will post 10.65 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Johnson & Johnson Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, June 4th. Investors of record on Tuesday, May 21st will be paid a dividend of $1.24 per share. This is an increase from Johnson & Johnson’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.19. The ex-dividend date is Monday, May 20th. This represents a $4.96 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.38%. Johnson & Johnson’s payout ratio is 29.68%.

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.