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

Certuity LLC lifted its stake in shares of Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ) by 63.9% in the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The institutional investor owned 13,338 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 5,198 shares during the quarter. Certuity LLC’s holdings in Johnson & Johnson were worth $2,091,000 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 stock. Islay Capital Management LLC grew its stake in Johnson & Johnson by 14.4% in the fourth quarter. Islay Capital Management LLC now owns 7,025 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,101,000 after purchasing an additional 885 shares in the last quarter. Duff & Phelps Investment Management Co. lifted its holdings in Johnson & Johnson by 1.1% during the 4th quarter. Duff & Phelps Investment Management Co. now owns 26,919 shares of the company’s stock worth $4,219,000 after buying an additional 300 shares during the last quarter. Ledyard National Bank increased its holdings in shares of Johnson & Johnson by 2.7% in the 4th quarter. Ledyard National Bank now owns 58,278 shares of the company’s stock valued at $9,134,000 after acquiring an additional 1,539 shares during the last quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp raised its position in shares of Johnson & Johnson by 6.5% during the 4th quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 589,516 shares of the company’s stock valued at $92,401,000 after acquiring an additional 35,921 shares in the last quarter. Finally, LWM Advisory Services LLC lifted its stake in Johnson & Johnson by 3.5% during the fourth quarter. LWM Advisory Services LLC now owns 2,200 shares of the company’s stock worth $345,000 after purchasing an additional 75 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 69.55% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts have weighed in on the stock. HSBC raised shares of Johnson & Johnson from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and increased their target price for the stock from $169.00 to $170.00 in a report on Thursday, April 18th. Royal Bank of Canada cut their target price on shares of Johnson & Johnson from $181.00 to $175.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, April 17th. Cantor Fitzgerald reaffirmed an “overweight” rating and set a $215.00 target price on shares of Johnson & Johnson in a report on Monday, April 15th. Bank of America cut their price target on Johnson & Johnson from $180.00 to $170.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, April 17th. Finally, Morgan Stanley cut their target price 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. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, six have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $175.86.

Johnson & Johnson Stock Down 0.4 %

Johnson & Johnson stock opened at $149.27 on Friday. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $154.19 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $155.02. The stock has a market cap of $359.25 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 9.31, a PEG ratio of 2.46 and a beta of 0.55. Johnson & Johnson has a 52 week low of $143.13 and a 52 week high of $175.97. 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 (NYSE:JNJ) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, April 16th. The company reported $2.71 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates 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 net margin of 45.26% and a return on equity of 36.70%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 2.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $2.68 earnings per share. On average, analysts expect that Johnson & Johnson will post 10.65 EPS 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. Investors of record on Tuesday, May 21st will be paid a dividend of $1.24 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, May 20th. This represents a $4.96 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.32%. This is a boost from Johnson & Johnson’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.19. Johnson & Johnson’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 29.68%.

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

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.