Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ) Given Average Rating of “Moderate Buy” by Analysts

Shares of Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ) have been assigned a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” from the twenty brokerages that are covering the firm, MarketBeat.com reports. Eleven investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation, seven have given a buy recommendation and two have assigned a strong buy recommendation to the company. The average 12 month price target among brokerages that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $170.88.

A number of research analysts have recently weighed in on JNJ shares. Guggenheim reiterated a “neutral” rating on shares of Johnson & Johnson in a report on Wednesday, April 2nd. Royal Bank of Canada reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $181.00 target price on shares of Johnson & Johnson in a report on Wednesday, April 16th. The Goldman Sachs Group upgraded shares of Johnson & Johnson from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and raised their price target for the stock from $157.00 to $172.00 in a report on Wednesday, April 9th. Benchmark upgraded shares of Johnson & Johnson to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, April 24th. Finally, Raymond James cut their target price on shares of Johnson & Johnson from $165.00 to $162.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, April 14th.

Johnson & Johnson Stock Performance

Shares of JNJ opened at $153.17 on Friday. The company has a 50-day moving average of $155.67 and a two-hundred day moving average of $153.79. The stock has a market cap of $368.53 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 23.03, a PEG ratio of 2.56 and a beta of 0.42. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.43, a current ratio of 1.11 and a quick ratio of 0.86. Johnson & Johnson has a one year low of $140.68 and a one year high of $169.99.

Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, April 15th. The company reported $2.77 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.59 by $0.18. Johnson & Johnson had a net margin of 18.20% and a return on equity of 34.24%. The firm had revenue of $21.89 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $21.65 billion. On average, equities research analysts expect that Johnson & Johnson will post 10.58 earnings per share for the current year.

Johnson & Johnson Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, June 10th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, May 27th will be given a dividend of $1.30 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, May 27th. This represents a $5.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.39%. This is a boost from Johnson & Johnson’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.24. Johnson & Johnson’s dividend payout ratio is presently 57.84%.

Insider Activity

In related news, VP Robert J. Decker sold 6,999 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $165.88, for a total transaction of $1,160,994.12. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now directly owns 21,001 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,483,645.88. This represents a 25.00% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Insiders own 0.16% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of JNJ. R.H. Investment Group LLC bought a new stake in Johnson & Johnson during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $3,623,000. Founders Grove Wealth Partners LLC acquired a new position in shares of Johnson & Johnson during the fourth quarter worth approximately $972,000. Nabity Jensen Investment Management Inc boosted its position in shares of Johnson & Johnson by 4.2% in the fourth quarter. Nabity Jensen Investment Management Inc now owns 4,555 shares of the company’s stock valued at $659,000 after acquiring an additional 182 shares during the period. Apella Capital LLC grew its stake in shares of Johnson & Johnson by 1.5% in the fourth quarter. Apella Capital LLC now owns 24,335 shares of the company’s stock worth $3,519,000 after acquiring an additional 348 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Wolff Wiese Magana LLC increased its position in Johnson & Johnson by 2.5% during the fourth quarter. Wolff Wiese Magana LLC now owns 3,832 shares of the company’s stock worth $554,000 after acquiring an additional 92 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 69.55% of the company’s stock.

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.