Gradient Investments LLC Reduces Position in Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ)

Gradient Investments LLC reduced its position in shares of Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ) by 5.7% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 212,608 shares of the company’s stock after selling 12,812 shares during the period. Gradient Investments LLC’s holdings in Johnson & Johnson were worth $30,747,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. IFS Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Johnson & Johnson by 138.9% in the 4th quarter. IFS Advisors LLC now owns 172 shares of the company’s stock valued at $25,000 after buying an additional 100 shares in the last quarter. Highline Wealth Partners LLC acquired a new position in Johnson & Johnson in the third quarter valued at $31,000. RPg Family Wealth Advisory LLC purchased a new position in shares of Johnson & Johnson during the third quarter worth about $35,000. Mowery & Schoenfeld Wealth Management LLC increased its position in shares of Johnson & Johnson by 58.7% during the third quarter. Mowery & Schoenfeld Wealth Management LLC now owns 246 shares of the company’s stock worth $40,000 after purchasing an additional 91 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Activest Wealth Management acquired a new stake in shares of Johnson & Johnson in the 3rd quarter valued at about $40,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 69.55% of the company’s stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, Director Mark A. Weinberger acquired 1,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, December 12th. The shares were acquired at an average price of $147.22 per share, with a total value of $147,220.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the director now directly owns 1,000 shares in the company, valued at approximately $147,220. The trade was a ∞ increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. 0.16% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

JNJ has been the subject of a number of research reports. Citigroup reduced their price objective on Johnson & Johnson from $185.00 to $175.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, December 11th. Royal Bank of Canada reiterated an “outperform” rating and set a $181.00 price target on shares of Johnson & Johnson in a research note on Thursday, January 23rd. Cantor Fitzgerald restated an “overweight” rating and issued a $215.00 price objective on shares of Johnson & Johnson in a research note on Wednesday, October 16th. Wolfe Research started coverage on shares of Johnson & Johnson in a research note on Friday, November 15th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $190.00 target price for the company. Finally, Barclays dropped their price target on Johnson & Johnson from $160.00 to $159.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, January 21st. Nine equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $170.06.

Johnson & Johnson Stock Up 4.1 %

JNJ stock opened at $152.91 on Tuesday. Johnson & Johnson has a 52 week low of $140.68 and a 52 week high of $168.85. The company has a market cap of $368.15 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.99, a P/E/G ratio of 2.45 and a beta of 0.51. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $147.85 and its 200 day moving average price is $156.10. The company has a current ratio of 1.03, a quick ratio of 0.79 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.45.

Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, January 22nd. The company reported $2.04 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.99 by $0.05. The business had revenue of $22.52 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $22,438,500 billion. Johnson & Johnson had a net margin of 18.20% and a return on equity of 34.35%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 5.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $2.29 EPS. On average, research analysts expect that Johnson & Johnson will post 10.56 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Johnson & Johnson Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, March 4th. Investors of record on Tuesday, February 18th will be paid a $1.24 dividend. This represents a $4.96 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.24%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, February 18th. Johnson & Johnson’s payout ratio is currently 74.59%.

Johnson & Johnson Profile

Johnson & Johnson is a holding company, which engages in the research, development, manufacture, and sale of products in the healthcare field. It operates through the Innovative Medicine and MedTech segments. The Innovative Medicine segment focuses on immunology, infectious diseases, neuroscience, oncology, cardiovascular and metabolism, and pulmonary hypertension.