Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ) Shares Sold by Clifford Swan Investment Counsel LLC

Clifford Swan Investment Counsel LLC lessened its holdings in shares of Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ) by 0.1% in the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 255,552 shares of the company’s stock after selling 137 shares during the quarter. Johnson & Johnson makes up approximately 1.6% of Clifford Swan Investment Counsel LLC’s holdings, making the stock its 11th largest holding. Clifford Swan Investment Counsel LLC’s holdings in Johnson & Johnson were worth $40,055,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in JNJ. Metis Global Partners LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Johnson & Johnson by 17.6% in the 4th quarter. Metis Global Partners LLC now owns 134,156 shares of the company’s stock valued at $21,028,000 after buying an additional 20,102 shares during the period. Gallacher Capital Management LLC boosted its position in Johnson & Johnson by 39.0% in the 4th quarter. Gallacher Capital Management LLC now owns 3,570 shares of the company’s stock worth $560,000 after purchasing an additional 1,001 shares in the last quarter. Channing Capital Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Johnson & Johnson by 5.3% during the 4th quarter. Channing Capital Management LLC now owns 53,142 shares of the company’s stock worth $8,329,000 after purchasing an additional 2,692 shares during the period. Sheets Smith Wealth Management lifted its stake in shares of Johnson & Johnson by 11.6% in the 4th quarter. Sheets Smith Wealth Management now owns 13,821 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,166,000 after purchasing an additional 1,432 shares during the period. Finally, Clearstead Trust LLC boosted its holdings in Johnson & Johnson by 8.6% during the fourth quarter. Clearstead Trust LLC now owns 34,801 shares of the company’s stock worth $5,455,000 after buying an additional 2,770 shares in the last quarter. 69.55% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, major shareholder & Johnson Johnson sold 3,725 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $25.81, for a total value of $96,142.25. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 4,099,575 shares in the company, valued at approximately $105,810,030.75. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. 0.16% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts have weighed in on the stock. Cantor Fitzgerald reiterated an “overweight” rating and issued a $215.00 price objective on shares of Johnson & Johnson in a research report on Monday. Bank of America dropped their price objective on Johnson & Johnson from $180.00 to $170.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, April 17th. Royal Bank of Canada decreased their target price on Johnson & Johnson from $181.00 to $175.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, April 17th. StockNews.com raised shares of Johnson & Johnson from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 6th. Finally, HSBC upgraded shares of Johnson & Johnson from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and lifted their target price for the company from $169.00 to $170.00 in a research report on Thursday, April 18th. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, six have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $175.86.

Johnson & Johnson Price Performance

JNJ stock opened at $149.85 on Friday. Johnson & Johnson has a 1 year low of $143.13 and a 1 year high of $175.97. The firm has a market capitalization of $360.64 billion, a PE ratio of 9.34, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.46 and a beta of 0.55. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $153.45 and a 200-day simple moving average of $154.93. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.36, a current ratio of 1.17 and a quick ratio of 0.94.

Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 16th. The company reported $2.71 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.64 by $0.07. The business had revenue of $21.38 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $21.39 billion. Johnson & Johnson had a net margin of 45.26% and a return on equity of 36.70%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 2.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $2.68 EPS. Equities research analysts anticipate that Johnson & Johnson will post 10.65 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Johnson & Johnson Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, June 4th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, May 21st will be given a $1.24 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, May 20th. This represents a $4.96 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.31%. This is a boost from Johnson & Johnson’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.19. Johnson & Johnson’s dividend payout ratio is presently 30.92%.

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.