NJ State Employees Deferred Compensation Plan Sells 4,730 Shares of Johnson & Johnson $JNJ

NJ State Employees Deferred Compensation Plan trimmed its stake in Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ) by 10.1% during the third quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 41,969 shares of the company’s stock after selling 4,730 shares during the period. Johnson & Johnson comprises about 0.9% of NJ State Employees Deferred Compensation Plan’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 14th largest position. NJ State Employees Deferred Compensation Plan’s holdings in Johnson & Johnson were worth $7,782,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Norges Bank bought a new position in Johnson & Johnson during the 2nd quarter valued at about $4,877,174,000. Laurel Wealth Advisors LLC increased its holdings in shares of Johnson & Johnson by 15,040.6% during the second quarter. Laurel Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 7,420,699 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,133,512,000 after buying an additional 7,371,687 shares in the last quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its stake in shares of Johnson & Johnson by 1.3% in the second quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 237,047,859 shares of the company’s stock valued at $36,209,060,000 after acquiring an additional 3,085,180 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its position in Johnson & Johnson by 2.1% during the 2nd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 60,609,476 shares of the company’s stock worth $9,227,988,000 after acquiring an additional 1,225,676 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Legal & General Group Plc increased its holdings in Johnson & Johnson by 6.2% during the 2nd quarter. Legal & General Group Plc now owns 18,917,274 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,889,614,000 after purchasing an additional 1,097,855 shares in the last quarter. 69.55% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Johnson & Johnson Stock Down 0.5%

Johnson & Johnson stock opened at $243.37 on Tuesday. Johnson & Johnson has a fifty-two week low of $141.50 and a fifty-two week high of $246.35. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.48, a current ratio of 1.03 and a quick ratio of 0.77. The firm has a market capitalization of $586.51 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.02, a PEG ratio of 2.36 and a beta of 0.35. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $218.09 and its 200 day simple moving average is $197.35.

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

Johnson & Johnson Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, March 10th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, February 24th will be paid a $1.30 dividend. The ex-dividend date 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 currently 47.06%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts have recently commented on JNJ shares. BMO Capital Markets restated an “outperform” rating on shares of Johnson & Johnson in a report on Thursday, December 11th. Argus upped their price target on shares of Johnson & Johnson from $210.00 to $240.00 in a research report on Friday, January 23rd. Bank of America raised their price objective on shares of Johnson & Johnson from $220.00 to $221.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 22nd. Wells Fargo & Company upped their target price on shares of Johnson & Johnson from $230.00 to $240.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 22nd. Finally, Guggenheim increased their price target on shares of Johnson & Johnson from $227.00 to $240.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, January 23rd. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seventeen have issued a Buy rating and eight have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Johnson & Johnson currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $233.73.

About Johnson & Johnson

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.