Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ) Shares Up 0.6% – Should You Buy?

Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ)’s share price rose 0.6% during trading on Thursday . The company traded as high as $156.63 and last traded at $155.40. Approximately 4,140,444 shares traded hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 41% from the average daily volume of 7,057,054 shares. The stock had previously closed at $154.52.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages have recently weighed in on JNJ. Guggenheim boosted their price target on Johnson & Johnson from $156.00 to $162.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, November 6th. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Johnson & Johnson from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Saturday, September 14th. Morgan Stanley raised their price target on shares of Johnson & Johnson from $169.00 to $175.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 16th. Cantor Fitzgerald reissued an “overweight” rating and issued a $215.00 target price on shares of Johnson & Johnson in a research report on Wednesday, October 16th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price target on Johnson & Johnson from $163.00 to $166.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 16th. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $175.94.

Johnson & Johnson Price Performance

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.45, a current ratio of 1.03 and a quick ratio of 0.79. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $159.15 and its 200-day moving average is $156.40. The stock has a market capitalization of $373.37 billion, a PE ratio of 22.44, a P/E/G ratio of 2.76 and a beta of 0.53.

Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, October 15th. The company reported $2.42 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.21 by $0.21. The firm had revenue of $22.47 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $22.17 billion. Johnson & Johnson had a return on equity of 35.45% and a net margin of 19.14%. Johnson & Johnson’s revenue for the quarter was up 5.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $2.66 EPS. As a group, equities analysts predict that Johnson & Johnson will post 9.93 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Johnson & Johnson Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 10th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, November 26th will be given a dividend of $1.24 per share. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, November 26th. This represents a $4.96 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.20%. Johnson & Johnson’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 71.78%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Johnson & Johnson

A number of large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Old North State Trust LLC raised its position in shares of Johnson & Johnson by 1.6% during the 3rd quarter. Old North State Trust LLC now owns 7,553 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,224,000 after purchasing an additional 120 shares during the last quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Johnson & Johnson by 11.4% during the third quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 16,840,069 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,721,355,000 after acquiring an additional 1,729,281 shares during the last quarter. Tidal Investments LLC lifted its position in shares of Johnson & Johnson by 11.1% in the third quarter. Tidal Investments LLC now owns 186,860 shares of the company’s stock valued at $30,283,000 after acquiring an additional 18,605 shares in the last quarter. Destination Wealth Management boosted its stake in shares of Johnson & Johnson by 2.7% in the third quarter. Destination Wealth Management now owns 268,537 shares of the company’s stock worth $43,519,000 after acquiring an additional 7,133 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB increased its position in shares of Johnson & Johnson by 112.4% during the third quarter. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB now owns 501,138 shares of the company’s stock worth $81,214,000 after purchasing an additional 265,215 shares in the last quarter. 69.55% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.