Financial Symmetry Inc Invests $207,000 in Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ)

Financial Symmetry Inc purchased a new position in shares of Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ) in the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The fund purchased 1,319 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $207,000.

A number of other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the business. Tower View Wealth Management LLC increased its holdings 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 purchasing an additional 165 shares in the last quarter. Keener Financial Planning LLC acquired a new position in Johnson & Johnson in the 4th quarter worth about $40,000. Creative Capital Management Investments LLC increased its holdings in Johnson & Johnson by 43.0% in 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 in the last quarter. Altshuler Shaham Ltd grew its position in shares of Johnson & Johnson by 37.8% in the 3rd quarter. Altshuler Shaham Ltd now owns 317 shares of the company’s stock valued at $49,000 after buying an additional 87 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Mizuho Securities Co. Ltd. grew its position in shares of Johnson & Johnson by 216.7% in the 3rd quarter. Mizuho Securities Co. Ltd. now owns 380 shares of the company’s stock valued at $59,000 after buying an additional 260 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 69.55% of the company’s stock.

Johnson & Johnson Stock Down 0.7 %

Shares of NYSE:JNJ opened at $148.53 on Thursday. The business’s 50 day simple moving average is $155.69 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $155.47. The firm has a market cap of $357.92 billion, a P/E ratio of 9.26, a PEG ratio of 2.46 and a beta of 0.53. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.38, a quick ratio of 0.91 and a current ratio of 1.16. Johnson & Johnson has a 52-week low of $143.13 and a 52-week high of $175.97.

Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ) last announced 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. The business had revenue of $21.38 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $21.39 billion. Johnson & Johnson had a return on equity of 36.43% and a net margin of 45.26%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 2.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $2.68 earnings per share. As a group, research analysts forecast that Johnson & Johnson will post 10.65 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Johnson & Johnson Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, June 4th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, May 21st will be paid a $1.24 dividend. 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. This represents a $4.96 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.34%. Johnson & Johnson’s dividend payout ratio is 29.68%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts have commented on JNJ shares. StockNews.com upgraded Johnson & Johnson from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 6th. Morgan Stanley reduced their price target on Johnson & Johnson from $168.00 to $167.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, April 17th. 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. Royal Bank of Canada reduced their price target on Johnson & Johnson from $181.00 to $175.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, April 17th. Finally, HSBC upgraded Johnson & Johnson from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and upped their price target for the company from $169.00 to $170.00 in a research report on Thursday, April 18th. Seven equities 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 stock. According to MarketBeat, Johnson & Johnson currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $175.86.

Insider Transactions at Johnson & Johnson

In other news, major shareholder & Johnson Johnson sold 3,725 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $25.81, for a total value 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 sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. In other news, major shareholder & Johnson Johnson sold 3,725 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $25.81, for a total value 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 sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, EVP Jennifer L. Taubert sold 59,397 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred 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 completion of the sale, 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. Company insiders own 0.16% of the company’s stock.

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.