Wedbush Securities Inc. Sells 2,847 Shares of Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ)

Wedbush Securities Inc. reduced its holdings in Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ) by 4.2% during the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 64,487 shares of the company’s stock after selling 2,847 shares during the period. Wedbush Securities Inc.’s holdings in Johnson & Johnson were worth $9,425,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in JNJ. Citizens & Northern Corp increased its stake in shares of Johnson & Johnson by 3.5% in the 2nd quarter. Citizens & Northern Corp now owns 1,884 shares of the company’s stock valued at $275,000 after purchasing an additional 63 shares during the last quarter. Carolinas Wealth Consulting LLC grew its position in Johnson & Johnson by 0.4% during the 4th quarter. Carolinas Wealth Consulting LLC now owns 16,861 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,643,000 after acquiring an additional 64 shares during the last quarter. Epic Trust Investment Advisors LLC grew its position in Johnson & Johnson by 3.6% during the 2nd quarter. Epic Trust Investment Advisors LLC now owns 1,831 shares of the company’s stock worth $268,000 after acquiring an additional 64 shares during the last quarter. Verity Asset Management Inc. grew its position in Johnson & Johnson by 2.0% during the 4th quarter. Verity Asset Management Inc. now owns 3,268 shares of the company’s stock worth $512,000 after acquiring an additional 65 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Outfitter Financial LLC grew its position in Johnson & Johnson by 0.4% during the 2nd quarter. Outfitter Financial LLC now owns 16,632 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,431,000 after acquiring an additional 65 shares during the last quarter. 69.55% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insider Activity at Johnson & Johnson

In related news, VP Robert J. Decker sold 5,635 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $165.06, for a total value of $930,113.10. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now directly owns 18,973 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,131,683.38. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. 0.16% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts recently weighed in on JNJ shares. Cantor Fitzgerald restated an “overweight” rating and set a $215.00 price objective on shares of Johnson & Johnson in a research report on Monday. Daiwa America downgraded Johnson & Johnson from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, July 23rd. Royal Bank of Canada reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and set a $175.00 target price on shares of Johnson & Johnson in a report on Tuesday, July 30th. Morgan Stanley lifted their target price on Johnson & Johnson from $167.00 to $169.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Thursday, July 18th. Finally, TD Securities cut their target price on Johnson & Johnson from $195.00 to $185.00 in a report on Thursday, July 18th. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $173.21.

Johnson & Johnson Stock Up 0.5 %

Shares of NYSE:JNJ opened at $167.38 on Wednesday. The company has a market capitalization of $402.92 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.44, a P/E/G ratio of 2.71 and a beta of 0.53. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.44, a current ratio of 1.07 and a quick ratio of 0.85. The business’s 50-day moving average is $158.40 and its 200-day moving average is $153.85. Johnson & Johnson has a 1 year low of $143.13 and a 1 year high of $168.85.

Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 17th. The company reported $2.82 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.71 by $0.11. Johnson & Johnson had a return on equity of 36.60% and a net margin of 46.34%. The company had revenue of $22.45 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $22.33 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $2.80 EPS. The firm’s revenue was up 4.3% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts predict that Johnson & Johnson will post 10.02 earnings per share for the current year.

Johnson & Johnson Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, September 10th. Investors of record on Tuesday, August 27th were given a $1.24 dividend. This represents a $4.96 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.96%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, August 27th. Johnson & Johnson’s payout ratio is 30.92%.

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.