Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ) Shares Bought by Choreo LLC

Choreo LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ) by 35.6% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 54,647 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 14,358 shares during the quarter. Choreo LLC’s holdings in Johnson & Johnson were worth $8,565,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the business. Tower View Wealth Management LLC boosted its holdings in Johnson & Johnson by 183.3% in the third quarter. Tower View Wealth Management LLC now owns 255 shares of the company’s stock valued at $40,000 after acquiring an additional 165 shares during the last quarter. Keener Financial Planning LLC purchased a new position in shares of Johnson & Johnson in the 4th quarter worth about $40,000. WFA Asset Management Corp lifted its stake in shares of Johnson & Johnson by 61.4% in the 4th quarter. WFA Asset Management Corp now owns 255 shares of the company’s stock valued at $40,000 after purchasing an additional 97 shares in the last quarter. Creative Capital Management Investments LLC grew its holdings in shares of 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 purchasing an additional 86 shares during the period. Finally, Disciplined Equity Management Inc. acquired a new stake in Johnson & Johnson during the 4th quarter worth approximately $45,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 69.55% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts have issued reports on JNJ shares. HSBC upgraded shares of Johnson & Johnson from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and boosted their price objective for the stock from $169.00 to $170.00 in a research note on Thursday, April 18th. 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. Morgan Stanley reduced their price objective on Johnson & Johnson from $168.00 to $167.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, April 17th. StockNews.com raised Johnson & Johnson from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 6th. Finally, Bank of America reduced their price target on Johnson & Johnson from $180.00 to $170.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, April 17th. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, six have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $175.86.

Insider Transactions at Johnson & Johnson

In related news, major shareholder & Johnson Johnson sold 3,725 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, February 16th. The stock was 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 $105,810,030.75. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. In other Johnson & Johnson news, EVP Jennifer L. Taubert sold 59,397 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, February 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $156.27, for a total value 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 Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, major shareholder & Johnson Johnson sold 3,725 shares of Johnson & Johnson stock in a transaction dated 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 owns 4,099,575 shares in the company, valued at $105,810,030.75. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 0.16% of the company’s stock.

Johnson & Johnson Stock Down 0.4 %

JNJ stock opened at $149.27 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $359.70 billion, a P/E ratio of 9.31, a PEG ratio of 2.49 and a beta of 0.55. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $154.44 and a 200-day simple moving average of $155.08. The company has a current ratio of 1.17, a quick ratio of 0.91 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.36. 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 earnings results on Tuesday, April 16th. The company reported $2.71 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.64 by $0.07. Johnson & Johnson had a net margin of 45.26% and a return on equity of 36.70%. The company had revenue of $21.38 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $21.39 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $2.68 EPS. The company’s revenue was up 2.3% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities research analysts predict that Johnson & Johnson will post 10.65 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Johnson & Johnson Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, June 4th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, May 21st will be issued a dividend of $1.24 per share. This represents a $4.96 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.32%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, May 20th. This is an increase from Johnson & Johnson’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.19. Johnson & Johnson’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 30.92%.

About Johnson & Johnson

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.