Simplify Asset Management Inc. Sells 775 Shares of Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ)

Simplify Asset Management Inc. reduced its stake in Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ) by 3.2% in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 23,520 shares of the company’s stock after selling 775 shares during the period. Simplify Asset Management Inc.’s holdings in Johnson & Johnson were worth $3,438,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the stock. Gilbert & Cook Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Johnson & Johnson by 3.3% during the 4th quarter. Gilbert & Cook Inc. now owns 9,111 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,428,000 after buying an additional 288 shares in the last quarter. 9258 Wealth Management LLC grew its holdings in Johnson & Johnson by 2.1% in the fourth quarter. 9258 Wealth Management LLC now owns 22,034 shares of the company’s stock worth $3,454,000 after purchasing an additional 443 shares during the period. Gryphon Financial Partners LLC increased its stake in shares of Johnson & Johnson by 66.3% during the fourth quarter. Gryphon Financial Partners LLC now owns 14,245 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,244,000 after purchasing an additional 5,680 shares in the last quarter. TrinityPoint Wealth LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Johnson & Johnson by 1.9% during the fourth quarter. TrinityPoint Wealth LLC now owns 36,777 shares of the company’s stock valued at $5,764,000 after purchasing an additional 700 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Assetmark Inc. grew its stake in shares of Johnson & Johnson by 2.1% in the 4th quarter. Assetmark Inc. now owns 51,728 shares of the company’s stock worth $8,108,000 after buying an additional 1,060 shares during the last quarter. 69.55% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Transactions at Johnson & Johnson

In related news, VP Robert J. Decker sold 5,635 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, August 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $165.06, for a total transaction of $930,113.10. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now owns 18,973 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,131,683.38. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Company insiders own 0.16% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts have recently issued reports on JNJ shares. Morgan Stanley upped their target price on shares of Johnson & Johnson from $167.00 to $169.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Thursday, July 18th. Sanford C. Bernstein increased their target price on Johnson & Johnson from $161.00 to $171.00 in a research note on Thursday, July 18th. Cantor Fitzgerald reaffirmed an “overweight” rating and set a $215.00 price target on shares of Johnson & Johnson in a report on Monday. TD Securities reduced their price objective on Johnson & Johnson from $195.00 to $185.00 in a report on Thursday, July 18th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group dropped their price target on shares of Johnson & Johnson from $160.00 to $155.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, July 19th. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, six have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $173.21.

Johnson & Johnson Stock Performance

NYSE:JNJ opened at $164.82 on Friday. 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 company has a market cap of $396.67 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.28, a PEG ratio of 2.71 and a beta of 0.53. Johnson & Johnson has a 1 year low of $143.13 and a 1 year high of $168.85. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $161.02 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $154.17.

Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ) last released its quarterly earnings results 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 net margin of 46.34% and a return on equity of 36.60%. The company had revenue of $22.45 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $22.33 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $2.80 earnings per share. Johnson & Johnson’s revenue was up 4.3% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Johnson & Johnson will post 10.02 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Johnson & Johnson Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, September 10th. Investors of record on Tuesday, August 27th were given a $1.24 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, August 27th. This represents a $4.96 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.01%. Johnson & Johnson’s dividend payout ratio is currently 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.