Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ) Shares Sold by Cooke & Bieler LP

Cooke & Bieler LP decreased its position in shares of Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ) by 1.2% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 811,662 shares of the company’s stock after selling 9,775 shares during the period. Cooke & Bieler LP’s holdings in Johnson & Johnson were worth $117,383,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of JNJ. Knuff & Co LLC raised its position in Johnson & Johnson by 0.7% in the 3rd quarter. Knuff & Co LLC now owns 9,466 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,534,000 after purchasing an additional 64 shares in the last quarter. Vertex Planning Partners LLC grew its stake in Johnson & Johnson by 1.3% during the 3rd quarter. Vertex Planning Partners LLC now owns 5,211 shares of the company’s stock worth $844,000 after buying an additional 65 shares during the last quarter. Werba Rubin Papier Wealth Management grew its stake in Johnson & Johnson by 3.3% during the 4th quarter. Werba Rubin Papier Wealth Management now owns 2,080 shares of the company’s stock worth $301,000 after buying an additional 66 shares during the last quarter. Denali Advisors LLC grew its stake in shares of Johnson & Johnson by 1.3% in the 4th quarter. Denali Advisors LLC now owns 5,128 shares of the company’s stock valued at $742,000 after purchasing an additional 67 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Sage Mountain Advisors LLC grew its stake in shares of Johnson & Johnson by 0.5% in the 4th quarter. Sage Mountain Advisors LLC now owns 14,564 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,106,000 after purchasing an additional 67 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 69.55% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity

In other news, VP Robert J. Decker sold 6,999 shares of Johnson & Johnson stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $165.88, for a total value of $1,160,994.12. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now owns 21,001 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,483,645.88. The trade was a 25.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, EVP Timothy Schmid sold 403 shares of Johnson & Johnson stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $156.15, for a total value of $62,928.45. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 15,098 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,357,552.70. This represents a 2.60 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 0.16% of the company’s stock.

Johnson & Johnson Stock Performance

Johnson & Johnson stock opened at $167.57 on Tuesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.43, a quick ratio of 0.86 and a current ratio of 1.11. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $153.44 and a two-hundred day moving average of $156.28. The company has a market capitalization of $403.45 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 25.20, a PEG ratio of 2.56 and a beta of 0.47. Johnson & Johnson has a fifty-two week low of $140.68 and a fifty-two week high of $169.99.

Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, January 22nd. The company reported $2.04 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.99 by $0.05. The company had revenue of $22.52 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $22.44 billion. Johnson & Johnson had a return on equity of 34.24% and a net margin of 18.20%. Johnson & Johnson’s revenue was up 5.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $2.29 earnings per share. On average, analysts anticipate that Johnson & Johnson will post 10.58 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Johnson & Johnson Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, March 4th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, February 18th were given a $1.24 dividend. This represents a $4.96 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.96%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, February 18th. Johnson & Johnson’s dividend payout ratio is currently 74.59%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts have weighed in on JNJ shares. Argus upgraded Johnson & Johnson to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Friday, January 24th. Wolfe Research initiated coverage on Johnson & Johnson in a report on Friday, November 15th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $190.00 price target for the company. Citigroup reduced their price target on Johnson & Johnson from $185.00 to $175.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, December 11th. StockNews.com raised Johnson & Johnson from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Saturday, January 25th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada reissued an “outperform” rating and issued a $181.00 price target on shares of Johnson & Johnson in a report on Wednesday, February 19th. Nine equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have issued a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $171.33.

Johnson & Johnson Company 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.