Golden State Equity Partners Reduces Holdings in Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ)

Golden State Equity Partners trimmed its position in shares of Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ) by 20.7% in the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm owned 19,225 shares of the company’s stock after selling 5,030 shares during the period. Golden State Equity Partners’ holdings in Johnson & Johnson were worth $3,013,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Tower View Wealth Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of Johnson & Johnson by 183.3% during the 3rd quarter. Tower View Wealth Management LLC now owns 255 shares of the company’s stock valued at $40,000 after buying an additional 165 shares during the last quarter. Keener Financial Planning LLC bought a new position in Johnson & Johnson during the 4th quarter valued at $40,000. WFA Asset Management Corp boosted its stake in Johnson & Johnson by 61.4% during the 4th quarter. WFA Asset Management Corp now owns 255 shares of the company’s stock valued at $40,000 after acquiring an additional 97 shares during the last quarter. Creative Capital Management Investments LLC grew its holdings in Johnson & Johnson by 43.0% during the 3rd quarter. Creative Capital Management Investments LLC now owns 286 shares of the company’s stock worth $45,000 after acquiring an additional 86 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Disciplined Equity Management Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Johnson & Johnson in the 4th quarter worth about $45,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 69.55% of the company’s stock.

Johnson & Johnson Stock Performance

JNJ opened at $151.16 on Thursday. The company has a current ratio of 1.16, a quick ratio of 0.91 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.38. The business’s 50 day moving average is $154.65 and its 200-day moving average is $155.11. The stock has a market cap of $364.26 billion, a PE ratio of 9.42, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.42 and a beta of 0.53. Johnson & Johnson has a twelve month low of $143.13 and a twelve month high of $175.97.

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

Johnson & Johnson Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed 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 represents a $4.96 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.28%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, May 20th. This is a positive change from Johnson & Johnson’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.19. Johnson & Johnson’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 29.68%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

JNJ has been the subject of a number of research reports. Morgan Stanley decreased their price target on Johnson & Johnson from $168.00 to $167.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, April 17th. 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. Royal Bank of Canada reduced their price objective on Johnson & Johnson from $181.00 to $175.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, April 17th. Raymond James increased their target price on shares of Johnson & Johnson from $172.00 to $175.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 3rd. Finally, StockNews.com upgraded shares of Johnson & Johnson from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 6th. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, six have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $175.86.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, EVP Jennifer L. Taubert sold 59,397 shares of Johnson & Johnson 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 in the company, valued at approximately $22,099,078.32. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In related news, major shareholder & Johnson Johnson sold 3,725 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred 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 completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 4,099,575 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $105,810,030.75. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, EVP Jennifer L. Taubert sold 59,397 shares of Johnson & Johnson stock in a transaction that occurred 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 completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 141,416 shares in the company, valued at approximately $22,099,078.32. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.16% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

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.