Hartford Financial Management Inc. Purchases 116 Shares of Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ)

Hartford Financial Management Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ) by 0.3% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 33,275 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 116 shares during the period. Johnson & Johnson comprises approximately 1.2% of Hartford Financial Management Inc.’s portfolio, making the stock its 27th biggest holding. Hartford Financial Management Inc.’s holdings in Johnson & Johnson were worth $5,215,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the business. G2 Capital Management LLC OH bought a new position in shares of Johnson & Johnson during the 4th quarter valued at $403,000. Cornerstone Wealth Group LLC boosted its position in Johnson & Johnson by 1.3% during the fourth quarter. Cornerstone Wealth Group LLC now owns 32,291 shares of the company’s stock valued at $5,061,000 after buying an additional 405 shares during the period. Cassia Capital Partners LLC increased its holdings in shares of Johnson & Johnson by 2.4% in the fourth quarter. Cassia Capital Partners LLC now owns 4,031 shares of the company’s stock worth $632,000 after buying an additional 94 shares during the period. Braun Bostich & Associates Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Johnson & Johnson by 327.1% in the 4th quarter. Braun Bostich & Associates Inc. now owns 6,347 shares of the company’s stock valued at $995,000 after acquiring an additional 4,861 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Perigon Wealth Management LLC boosted its holdings in Johnson & Johnson by 20.7% during the 4th quarter. Perigon Wealth Management LLC now owns 117,149 shares of the company’s stock valued at $18,362,000 after acquiring an additional 20,065 shares during the period. 69.55% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Johnson & Johnson Price Performance

JNJ opened at $144.77 on Thursday. Johnson & Johnson has a 12-month low of $143.39 and a 12-month high of $175.97. The company has a market cap of $348.86 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.48, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.45 and a beta of 0.53. 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 stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $156.54 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $155.74.

Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 16th. The company reported $2.71 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.64 by $0.07. Johnson & Johnson had a net margin of 37.79% and a return on equity of 37.27%. The company had revenue of $21.38 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $21.39 billion. During the same period last year, the company posted $2.68 EPS. Johnson & Johnson’s revenue was up 2.3% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts predict that Johnson & Johnson will post 10.66 earnings per share 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. Investors of record on Tuesday, May 21st will be given a dividend of $1.24 per share. This represents a $4.96 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.43%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, May 20th. This is a positive change from Johnson & Johnson’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.19. Johnson & Johnson’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 34.47%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Johnson & Johnson

In other news, EVP Jennifer L. Taubert sold 59,397 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction 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 completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 141,416 shares in the company, valued at $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, EVP Jennifer L. Taubert sold 59,397 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on 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 owns 141,416 shares in the company, valued at $22,099,078.32. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, 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 directly owns 4,099,575 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $105,810,030.75. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.16% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts have commented on the company. Bank of America decreased their price target on Johnson & Johnson from $180.00 to $170.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday. Morgan Stanley lowered their price target on shares of Johnson & Johnson from $170.00 to $169.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, January 24th. Raymond James raised their price target 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. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Johnson & Johnson from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 6th. Finally, Cantor Fitzgerald reiterated an “overweight” rating and set a $215.00 target price on shares of Johnson & Johnson in a report on Monday. Eight equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, five have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $176.36.

Johnson & Johnson Company 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.