Southeast Asset Advisors LLC Boosts Holdings in Johnson & Johnson $JNJ

Southeast Asset Advisors LLC raised its holdings in shares of Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ) by 14.7% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 48,154 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 6,167 shares during the period. Johnson & Johnson comprises 1.0% of Southeast Asset Advisors LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its 17th largest holding. Southeast Asset Advisors LLC’s holdings in Johnson & Johnson were worth $8,929,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the business. Clark Asset Management LLC raised its position in shares of Johnson & Johnson by 51.6% during the 2nd quarter. Clark Asset Management LLC now owns 8,884 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,357,000 after purchasing an additional 3,025 shares during the period. AustralianSuper Pty Ltd raised its holdings in Johnson & Johnson by 632.0% during the third quarter. AustralianSuper Pty Ltd now owns 89,183 shares of the company’s stock valued at $16,536,000 after acquiring an additional 77,000 shares during the period. J.W. Cole Advisors Inc. lifted its position in shares of Johnson & Johnson by 2.2% in the third quarter. J.W. Cole Advisors Inc. now owns 130,934 shares of the company’s stock valued at $24,278,000 after acquiring an additional 2,769 shares in the last quarter. Guinness Asset Management LTD boosted its stake in shares of Johnson & Johnson by 0.4% in the third quarter. Guinness Asset Management LTD now owns 1,383,195 shares of the company’s stock worth $251,216,000 after acquiring an additional 5,994 shares during the period. Finally, Treasurer of the State of North Carolina raised its stake in Johnson & Johnson by 8.3% during the 2nd quarter. Treasurer of the State of North Carolina now owns 1,234,945 shares of the company’s stock valued at $188,638,000 after purchasing an additional 94,957 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 69.55% of the company’s stock.

Johnson & Johnson Trading Down 0.5%

JNJ stock opened at $243.37 on Monday. Johnson & Johnson has a 12 month low of $141.50 and a 12 month high of $246.35. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $217.25 and its 200 day moving average is $196.79. The company has a market capitalization of $586.51 billion, a PE ratio of 22.02, a P/E/G ratio of 2.36 and a beta of 0.35. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.48, a current ratio of 1.03 and a quick ratio of 0.77.

Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Saturday, January 31st. The company reported $2.46 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter. Johnson & Johnson had a return on equity of 33.04% and a net margin of 28.46%.The firm had revenue of $24.28 billion during the quarter. On average, research analysts anticipate that Johnson & Johnson will post 10.58 EPS for the current year.

Johnson & Johnson Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, March 10th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, February 24th will be given a dividend of $1.30 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, February 24th. This represents a $5.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.1%. Johnson & Johnson’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 47.06%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Loop Capital set a $220.00 target price on shares of Johnson & Johnson in a research report on Tuesday, January 27th. Barclays lifted their target price on Johnson & Johnson from $197.00 to $217.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Tuesday, December 30th. UBS Group restated a “buy” rating on shares of Johnson & Johnson in a report on Monday, January 5th. Sanford C. Bernstein upped their price objective on Johnson & Johnson from $208.00 to $225.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a report on Friday, January 23rd. Finally, TD Cowen raised their target price on shares of Johnson & Johnson from $222.00 to $250.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, January 22nd. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seventeen have assigned a Buy rating and eight have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Johnson & Johnson has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $233.73.

More Johnson & Johnson News

Here are the key news stories impacting Johnson & Johnson this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Jim Cramer publicly praised J&J on-air, calling the company “amazing,” which can boost retail investor interest and provide short-term support for the stock. Johnson & Johnson (JNJ) Is Amazing, Says Jim Cramer
• Neutral Sentiment: Wall Street Zen cut JNJ to a Hold, signaling reduced upside conviction from at least one boutique research provider; that can temper buying enthusiasm but is not a major institutional downgrade. Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ) Cut to Hold at Wall Street Zen
• Negative Sentiment: A Pennsylvania jury found J&J liable in a talc/ovarian-cancer case and ordered $250,000 in damages to the family of Gayle Emerson — a reminder that ongoing talc litigation continues to create legal costs, uncertainty and headline risk for the company. Jury: Johnson & Johnson Liable in Case Linking Baby Powder to Cancer

Johnson & Johnson Company Profile

Johnson & Johnson is a multinational healthcare company headquartered in New Brunswick, New Jersey, that develops, manufactures and markets a broad range of products across pharmaceuticals, medical devices and previously consumer health. Founded in 1886 by the Johnson family, the company has grown into a global healthcare organization with operations and sales in many countries around the world.

The company’s pharmaceuticals business, organized largely under its Janssen research and development organization, focuses on prescription medicines across therapeutic areas such as immunology, infectious disease, oncology and neuroscience.