Foundry Partners LLC Sells 39,687 Shares of Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ)

Foundry Partners LLC decreased its holdings in shares of Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ) by 24.9% in the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The fund owned 119,916 shares of the company’s stock after selling 39,687 shares during the quarter. Johnson & Johnson makes up about 1.1% of Foundry Partners LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its 18th largest holding. Foundry Partners LLC’s holdings in Johnson & Johnson were worth $18,796,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of JNJ. Raymond James & Associates boosted its holdings in Johnson & Johnson by 0.4% in the 4th quarter. Raymond James & Associates now owns 6,061,707 shares of the company’s stock worth $950,112,000 after buying an additional 26,982 shares during the period. Ninety One UK Ltd boosted its holdings in Johnson & Johnson by 0.3% in the 4th quarter. Ninety One UK Ltd now owns 4,436,013 shares of the company’s stock worth $695,301,000 after buying an additional 12,867 shares during the period. DekaBank Deutsche Girozentrale boosted its holdings in Johnson & Johnson by 4.8% in the 4th quarter. DekaBank Deutsche Girozentrale now owns 4,396,416 shares of the company’s stock worth $688,198,000 after buying an additional 200,193 shares during the period. Stifel Financial Corp boosted its holdings in Johnson & Johnson by 2.9% in the 3rd quarter. Stifel Financial Corp now owns 4,306,268 shares of the company’s stock worth $670,726,000 after buying an additional 120,891 shares during the period. Finally, Envestnet Asset Management Inc. boosted its holdings in Johnson & Johnson by 22.2% in the 3rd quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. now owns 3,957,429 shares of the company’s stock worth $616,370,000 after buying an additional 719,472 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 69.55% of the company’s stock.

Johnson & Johnson Stock Performance

Johnson & Johnson stock opened at $146.14 on Friday. 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 firm has a market capitalization of $352.17 billion, a P/E ratio of 9.11, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.42 and a beta of 0.53. The company’s 50-day moving average is $155.26 and its 200 day moving average is $155.30.

Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ) last posted its quarterly earnings data 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. 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 analyst estimates of $21.39 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $2.68 EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 2.3% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts forecast that Johnson & Johnson will post 10.65 EPS for the current year.

Johnson & Johnson Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, June 4th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, May 21st will be paid a $1.24 dividend. This is an increase from Johnson & Johnson’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.19. This represents a $4.96 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.39%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, May 20th. Johnson & Johnson’s dividend payout ratio is currently 29.68%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Johnson & Johnson news, major shareholder & Johnson Johnson sold 3,725 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $25.81, for a total value 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 sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. In other Johnson & Johnson news, EVP Jennifer L. Taubert sold 59,397 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $156.27, for a total value 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 Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, 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 transaction, 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.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

JNJ has been the subject of several research reports. Cantor Fitzgerald reissued an “overweight” rating and set a $215.00 price objective on shares of Johnson & Johnson in a report on Monday, April 15th. Royal Bank of Canada dropped their price objective on shares of Johnson & Johnson from $181.00 to $175.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, April 17th. Bank of America dropped their price objective 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. StockNews.com raised shares of Johnson & Johnson from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 6th. Finally, Raymond James increased their price objective on shares of Johnson & Johnson from $172.00 to $175.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 3rd. Seven 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’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $175.86.

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.