American Financial Advisors LLC Lowers Position in Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ)

American Financial Advisors LLC cut its holdings in Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ) by 2.7% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 2,961 shares of the company’s stock after selling 83 shares during the quarter. American Financial Advisors LLC’s holdings in Johnson & Johnson were worth $464,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Keener Financial Planning LLC purchased a new stake in Johnson & Johnson in the fourth quarter worth about $40,000. Tower View Wealth Management LLC raised 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 worth $40,000 after purchasing an additional 165 shares in the last quarter. Creative Capital Management Investments LLC raised its holdings in Johnson & Johnson by 43.0% in the third 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 raised its holdings in Johnson & Johnson by 37.8% in the third quarter. Altshuler Shaham Ltd now owns 317 shares of the company’s stock worth $49,000 after purchasing an additional 87 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Mizuho Securities Co. Ltd. raised its holdings in Johnson & Johnson by 216.7% in the third quarter. Mizuho Securities Co. Ltd. now owns 380 shares of the company’s stock worth $59,000 after purchasing an additional 260 shares in the last quarter. 69.55% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Johnson & Johnson news, EVP Jennifer L. Taubert sold 59,397 shares of the company’s 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 sale, the executive vice president now owns 141,416 shares in the company, valued at approximately $22,099,078.32. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. In other news, major shareholder & Johnson Johnson sold 3,725 shares of the firm’s 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 sale, the insider now owns 4,099,575 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $105,810,030.75. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, EVP Jennifer L. Taubert sold 59,397 shares of the firm’s 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 sale, the executive vice president now directly 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.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages have commented on JNJ. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Johnson & Johnson from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 6th. Bank of America reduced their target price on shares of 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 boosted 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. HSBC upgraded shares of Johnson & Johnson from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and upped their price objective for the company from $169.00 to $170.00 in a report on Thursday, April 18th. Finally, Cantor Fitzgerald restated an “overweight” rating and set a $215.00 price objective on shares of Johnson & Johnson in a report on Monday, April 15th. Seven 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 company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Johnson & Johnson currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $175.86.

Johnson & Johnson Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:JNJ opened at $146.82 on Friday. Johnson & Johnson has a twelve month low of $143.13 and a twelve month high of $175.97. The company’s 50 day moving average is $155.47 and its 200 day moving average is $155.41. 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 company has a market cap of $353.80 billion, a PE ratio of 9.15, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.45 and a beta of 0.53.

Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ) last issued its quarterly 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 36.43%. The company had revenue of $21.38 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $21.39 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $2.68 EPS. Johnson & Johnson’s quarterly revenue was up 2.3% on a year-over-year basis. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that Johnson & Johnson will post 10.65 EPS for the current year.

Johnson & Johnson Increases Dividend

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

Johnson & Johnson 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.