Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ) Trading 1.2% Higher

Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ)’s share price traded up 1.2% during trading on Wednesday . The company traded as high as $153.22 and last traded at $153.12. 1,447,051 shares traded hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 80% from the average session volume of 7,300,418 shares. The stock had previously closed at $151.24.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

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

Johnson & Johnson Trading Up 1.7 %

The firm has a market cap of $370.03 billion, a PE ratio of 9.55, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.49 and a beta of 0.55. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $151.88 and a 200 day simple moving average of $155.12. The company has a current ratio of 1.17, a quick ratio of 0.94 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.36.

Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 16th. The company reported $2.71 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.64 by $0.07. The company had revenue of $21.38 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $21.39 billion. Johnson & Johnson had a net margin of 45.26% and a return on equity of 36.70%. The firm’s revenue was up 2.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $2.68 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Johnson & Johnson will post 10.64 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Johnson & Johnson Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, June 4th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, May 21st will be given a dividend of $1.24 per share. This is a positive change from Johnson & Johnson’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.19. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, May 20th. This represents a $4.96 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.23%. Johnson & Johnson’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 30.92%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Christopher J. Hasenberg Inc purchased a new position in Johnson & Johnson in the 1st quarter valued at $31,000. Tower View Wealth Management LLC boosted its position in Johnson & Johnson by 183.3% during the third quarter. Tower View Wealth Management LLC now owns 255 shares of the company’s stock worth $40,000 after acquiring an additional 165 shares during the last quarter. Keener Financial Planning LLC acquired a new stake in Johnson & Johnson in the 4th quarter valued at about $40,000. WFA Asset Management Corp lifted its stake in Johnson & Johnson by 61.4% in the 4th quarter. WFA Asset Management Corp now owns 255 shares of the company’s stock worth $40,000 after purchasing an additional 97 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Vermillion & White Wealth Management Group LLC acquired a new position in shares of Johnson & Johnson during the 4th quarter worth approximately $44,000. 69.55% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Johnson & Johnson

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.