Wahed Invest LLC Buys 3,807 Shares of Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ)

Wahed Invest LLC increased its stake in Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ) by 6.5% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 62,108 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 3,807 shares during the quarter. Johnson & Johnson comprises 1.5% of Wahed Invest LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its 10th largest position. Wahed Invest LLC’s holdings in Johnson & Johnson were worth $8,982,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Norges Bank purchased a new position in Johnson & Johnson in the fourth quarter valued at about $4,390,037,000. Raymond James Financial Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Johnson & Johnson during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $1,339,878,000. Northern Trust Corp grew its position in shares of Johnson & Johnson by 12.3% during the fourth quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 30,813,175 shares of the company’s stock worth $4,456,201,000 after buying an additional 3,363,235 shares in the last quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its stake in shares of Johnson & Johnson by 0.8% in the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 232,792,559 shares of the company’s stock worth $33,666,460,000 after buying an additional 1,772,706 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Franklin Resources Inc. raised its holdings in Johnson & Johnson by 11.4% in 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 in the last quarter. 69.55% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Activity at Johnson & Johnson

In other Johnson & Johnson news, VP Robert J. Decker sold 6,999 shares of the company’s 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 transaction, the vice president now owns 21,001 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,483,645.88. This represents a 25.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Timothy Schmid sold 403 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $156.15, for a total value of $62,928.45. Following 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 ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 0.16% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. Barclays dropped their target price on shares of Johnson & Johnson from $166.00 to $165.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, April 17th. Argus upgraded Johnson & Johnson to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Friday, January 24th. Morgan Stanley increased their target price on Johnson & Johnson from $164.00 to $169.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Wednesday, April 16th. Stifel Nicolaus dropped their price target on Johnson & Johnson from $170.00 to $155.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, January 23rd. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group raised shares of Johnson & Johnson from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and lifted their price objective for the stock from $157.00 to $172.00 in a report on Wednesday, April 9th. Nine investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have issued a buy rating and three have given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Johnson & Johnson currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $171.82.

Johnson & Johnson Price Performance

Shares of JNJ opened at $154.42 on Friday. Johnson & Johnson has a one year low of $140.68 and a one year high of $169.99. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $159.05 and its 200-day moving average is $154.73. 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 firm has a market capitalization of $371.54 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 23.22, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.56 and a beta of 0.49.

Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 15th. The company reported $2.77 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.59 by $0.18. The company had revenue of $21.89 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $21.65 billion. Johnson & Johnson had a net margin of 18.20% and a return on equity of 34.24%. Equities analysts anticipate that Johnson & Johnson will post 10.58 EPS for the current year.

Johnson & Johnson Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, June 10th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, May 27th will be paid a $1.30 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, May 27th. This represents a $5.20 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.37%. This is a boost from Johnson & Johnson’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.24. Johnson & Johnson’s payout ratio is currently 57.84%.

About Johnson & Johnson

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.