GAMMA Investing LLC Purchases New Holdings in Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ)

GAMMA Investing LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ) during the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The fund purchased 17,623 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,800,000. Johnson & Johnson accounts for about 0.8% of GAMMA Investing LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its 18th biggest holding.

Several other hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in JNJ. Lawson Kroeker Investment Management Inc. NE bought a new position in Johnson & Johnson in the 3rd quarter worth about $8,367,000. Financial Enhancement Group LLC grew its stake in Johnson & Johnson by 7.3% in the 3rd quarter. Financial Enhancement Group LLC now owns 2,199 shares of the company’s stock worth $346,000 after acquiring an additional 150 shares in the last quarter. Firethorn Wealth Partners LLC grew its stake in Johnson & Johnson by 1.5% in the 3rd quarter. Firethorn Wealth Partners LLC now owns 5,734 shares of the company’s stock worth $893,000 after acquiring an additional 87 shares in the last quarter. Atwater Malick LLC grew its stake in Johnson & Johnson by 3.7% in the 3rd quarter. Atwater Malick LLC now owns 49,001 shares of the company’s stock worth $7,632,000 after acquiring an additional 1,770 shares in the last quarter. Finally, GHP Investment Advisors Inc. lifted its position in shares of Johnson & Johnson by 2.7% in the 3rd quarter. GHP Investment Advisors Inc. now owns 50,534 shares of the company’s stock worth $7,926,000 after purchasing an additional 1,345 shares during the period. 69.55% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling at Johnson & Johnson

In other Johnson & Johnson news, major shareholder & Johnson Johnson sold 3,725 shares of the stock in a transaction 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 directly owns 4,099,575 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $105,810,030.75. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. In other Johnson & Johnson news, major shareholder & Johnson Johnson sold 3,725 shares of the stock in a transaction 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 directly owns 4,099,575 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $105,810,030.75. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing 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 on Friday, February 9th. The shares were 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 $22,099,078.32. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 0.16% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts have recently weighed in on JNJ shares. Bank of America lowered their price target on shares of Johnson & Johnson from $180.00 to $170.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, April 17th. Morgan Stanley lowered their price target on shares of Johnson & Johnson from $168.00 to $167.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, April 17th. Raymond James upped their price target on shares of Johnson & Johnson from $172.00 to $175.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 3rd. StockNews.com raised shares of Johnson & Johnson from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 6th. Finally, HSBC raised shares of Johnson & Johnson from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and increased their target price 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 issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $175.86.

Johnson & Johnson Stock Down 0.5 %

NYSE:JNJ opened at $146.14 on Monday. The firm has a market capitalization of $352.17 billion, a P/E ratio of 9.11, a PEG ratio of 2.41 and a beta of 0.53. Johnson & Johnson has a 1-year low of $143.13 and a 1-year high of $175.97. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $155.26 and its 200-day moving average price is $155.29. 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 (NYSE:JNJ) last released 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. The firm had revenue of $21.38 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $21.39 billion. Johnson & Johnson had a net margin of 45.26% and a return on equity of 36.43%. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 2.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $2.68 earnings per share. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that Johnson & Johnson will post 10.65 EPS for the current year.

Johnson & Johnson Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed 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 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.39%. This is an increase from Johnson & Johnson’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.19. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, May 20th. Johnson & Johnson’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 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.