MEAG MUNICH ERGO Kapitalanlagegesellschaft mbH Cuts Stock Position in Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ)

MEAG MUNICH ERGO Kapitalanlagegesellschaft mbH lessened its stake in Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ) by 78.5% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 2,973 shares of the company’s stock after selling 10,825 shares during the quarter. MEAG MUNICH ERGO Kapitalanlagegesellschaft mbH’s holdings in Johnson & Johnson were worth $470,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Pathway Financial Advisors LLC boosted its stake in Johnson & Johnson by 4.3% during the 4th quarter. Pathway Financial Advisors LLC now owns 5,438 shares of the company’s stock worth $852,000 after purchasing an additional 226 shares during the last quarter. Daiwa Securities Group Inc. boosted its position in shares of Johnson & Johnson by 5.5% during the 4th quarter. Daiwa Securities Group Inc. now owns 297,850 shares of the company’s stock valued at $46,685,000 after acquiring an additional 15,490 shares during the last quarter. OneAscent Financial Services LLC boosted its position in shares of Johnson & Johnson by 82.8% during the 4th quarter. OneAscent Financial Services LLC now owns 9,838 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,542,000 after acquiring an additional 4,457 shares during the last quarter. Vestmark Advisory Solutions Inc. boosted its position in shares of Johnson & Johnson by 12.7% during the 4th quarter. Vestmark Advisory Solutions Inc. now owns 19,587 shares of the company’s stock valued at $3,070,000 after acquiring an additional 2,201 shares during the last quarter. Finally, TrueMark Investments LLC acquired a new position in shares of Johnson & Johnson during the 4th quarter valued at about $1,458,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 69.55% of the company’s stock.

Johnson & Johnson Stock Performance

Shares of Johnson & Johnson stock opened at $145.62 on Thursday. The firm has a market capitalization of $350.46 billion, a P/E ratio of 9.08, a P/E/G ratio of 2.43 and a beta of 0.52. Johnson & Johnson has a 52 week low of $143.13 and a 52 week high of $175.97. The company has a quick ratio of 0.94, a current ratio of 1.17 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.36. The firm’s 50 day moving average is $148.02 and its two-hundred day moving average is $153.91.

Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 16th. The company reported $2.71 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.64 by $0.07. The company 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 firm’s revenue was up 2.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $2.68 earnings per share. Research analysts forecast that Johnson & Johnson will post 10.62 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Johnson & Johnson Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, June 4th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, May 21st were issued a $1.24 dividend. This is an increase from Johnson & Johnson’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.19. This represents a $4.96 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.41%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, May 20th. Johnson & Johnson’s dividend payout ratio is presently 30.92%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. StockNews.com raised shares of Johnson & Johnson from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Sunday. The Goldman Sachs Group started coverage on shares of Johnson & Johnson in a research note on Thursday, May 30th. They set a “neutral” rating and a $160.00 price target on the stock. Morgan Stanley cut their price target on shares of 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. Royal Bank of Canada reiterated an “outperform” rating and set a $175.00 price target on shares of Johnson & Johnson in a research note on Monday, June 17th. Finally, Bank of America cut their price target on shares of Johnson & Johnson from $180.00 to $170.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, April 17th. Eight investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, five have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $174.07.

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.