Epiq Partners LLC Sells 448 Shares of Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ)

Epiq Partners LLC lowered its stake in shares of Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ) by 2.2% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 19,841 shares of the company’s stock after selling 448 shares during the quarter. Johnson & Johnson comprises 2.1% of Epiq Partners LLC’s holdings, making the stock its 20th largest holding. Epiq Partners LLC’s holdings in Johnson & Johnson were worth $3,139,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Keener Financial Planning LLC purchased a new position in shares of Johnson & Johnson in the fourth quarter worth about $40,000. WFA Asset Management Corp raised its position in Johnson & Johnson by 61.4% during the fourth quarter. WFA Asset Management Corp now owns 255 shares of the company’s stock valued at $40,000 after acquiring an additional 97 shares in the last quarter. Vermillion & White Wealth Management Group LLC purchased a new position in Johnson & Johnson during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $44,000. Disciplined Equity Management Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Johnson & Johnson in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $45,000. Finally, Grayhawk Investment Strategies Inc. increased its position in shares of Johnson & Johnson by 528.6% in the fourth quarter. Grayhawk Investment Strategies Inc. now owns 308 shares of the company’s stock valued at $48,000 after buying an additional 259 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 69.55% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts have recently commented on JNJ shares. Cantor Fitzgerald restated an “overweight” rating and issued a $215.00 price objective on shares of Johnson & Johnson in a research report on Thursday, June 20th. The Goldman Sachs Group began coverage on Johnson & Johnson in a research note on Thursday, May 30th. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $160.00 price target on the stock. Royal Bank of Canada reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and issued a $175.00 price target on shares of Johnson & Johnson in a research note on Monday, June 17th. HSBC raised Johnson & Johnson from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and lifted their price target for the stock from $169.00 to $170.00 in a research note on Thursday, April 18th. Finally, StockNews.com lowered Johnson & Johnson from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Saturday, June 22nd. Eight analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Johnson & Johnson presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $174.07.

Johnson & Johnson Price Performance

JNJ stock opened at $145.82 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 1.17, a quick ratio of 0.94 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.36. The company has a market capitalization of $350.94 billion, a PE ratio of 9.09, a P/E/G ratio of 2.44 and a beta of 0.53. Johnson & Johnson has a 12-month low of $143.13 and a 12-month high of $175.97. The business’s fifty day moving average price is $148.17 and its 200 day moving average price is $154.19.

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 return on equity of 36.70% and a net margin of 45.26%. 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 business earned $2.68 EPS. Johnson & Johnson’s revenue was up 2.3% on a year-over-year basis. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Johnson & Johnson will post 10.62 EPS for the current year.

Johnson & Johnson Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, June 4th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, May 21st were issued a dividend of $1.24 per share. This is an increase from Johnson & Johnson’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.19. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, May 20th. This represents a $4.96 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.40%. Johnson & Johnson’s dividend payout ratio is 30.92%.

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.