Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ) Trading Down 1.7% – Time to Sell?

Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ)’s share price traded down 1.7% during trading on Friday . The company traded as low as $226.44 and last traded at $226.8090. 10,303,178 shares were traded during mid-day trading, an increase of 22% from the average session volume of 8,433,221 shares. The stock had previously closed at $230.80.

Key Stories Impacting Johnson & Johnson

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

• Positive Sentiment: Leerink Partners upgraded Johnson & Johnson (JNJ) to Outperform, which can help investor sentiment and suggests the firm sees more upside from current levels. Leerink Partners upgrades Johnson & Johnson (JNJ)
• Positive Sentiment: A new article says J&J’s story is shifting as newer drugs such as Icotyde, Inlexzo, Tecvayli and Tremfya gain attention, while a valuation update nudged fair value slightly higher. That points to continued pipeline progress as a key long-term driver. How The Story For Johnson & Johnson (JNJ) Is Shifting With New Drugs And Legal Twists
• Positive Sentiment: CAPLYTA data highlighted favorable efficacy and safety versus competing antipsychotics, reinforcing the value of J&J’s mental-health franchise and broader pipeline depth. CAPLYTA Data Highlights Johnson & Johnson Valuation And Mental Health Story
• Neutral Sentiment: MeiraGTx reported an asset purchase agreement with Johnson & Johnson for bota-vec, a transaction that appears more strategic than immediately material for earnings, but it shows J&J remains active in bolt-on pipeline deals. MeiraGTx Reports First Quarter 2026 Financial and Operational Results
• Neutral Sentiment: Recent bladder-cancer survey coverage reinforces the need for better therapies, which supports the market’s broader view that J&J’s oncology and urology pipeline could have room to grow, though the report itself does not change fundamentals immediately. Groundbreaking global survey captures the significant patient burden experienced with current standard-of-care bladder cancer treatments, underscoring urgency for continued innovation
• Negative Sentiment: Articles note Johnson & Johnson has been down since its last earnings report, indicating some investors remain cautious despite the company’s stable fundamentals and defensive profile. Why Is Johnson & Johnson (JNJ) Down 3.5% Since Last Earnings Report?

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts have commented on the company. Raymond James Financial lifted their price target on Johnson & Johnson from $237.00 to $258.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 15th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price target on Johnson & Johnson from $250.00 to $260.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 15th. Barclays lifted their price target on Johnson & Johnson from $234.00 to $255.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 15th. Leerink Partners raised Johnson & Johnson from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $265.00 price target on the stock in a research note on Wednesday. Finally, Rothschild & Co Redburn boosted their target price on Johnson & Johnson from $180.00 to $210.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 19th. Twenty equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and seven have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $253.04.

Johnson & Johnson Stock Down 1.7%

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.46, a current ratio of 1.03 and a quick ratio of 0.77. The stock has a market capitalization of $545.98 billion, a PE ratio of 26.22, a PEG ratio of 2.22 and a beta of 0.27. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $235.13 and a 200-day moving average price of $221.79.

Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, April 14th. The company reported $2.70 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.68 by $0.02. Johnson & Johnson had a return on equity of 32.60% and a net margin of 21.83%.The firm had revenue of $24.06 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $23.60 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $2.77 earnings per share. The business’s revenue was up 9.9% compared to the same quarter last year. Johnson & Johnson has set its FY 2026 guidance at 11.450-11.650 EPS. As a group, analysts forecast that Johnson & Johnson will post 11.57 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Johnson & Johnson Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, June 9th. Investors of record on Tuesday, May 26th will be paid a $1.34 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, May 26th. This is a positive change from Johnson & Johnson’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.30. This represents a $5.36 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.4%. Johnson & Johnson’s payout ratio is currently 60.12%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Johnson & Johnson

In related news, EVP Vanessa Broadhurst sold 6,197 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $243.39, for a total value of $1,508,287.83. Following the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 23,003 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $5,598,700.17. This represents a 21.22% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, EVP Timothy Schmid sold 1,322 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Friday, February 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $245.66, for a total value of $324,762.52. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 25,447 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,251,310.02. The trade was a 4.94% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Over the last ninety days, insiders sold 30,142 shares of company stock worth $7,360,528. 0.16% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Johnson & Johnson

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Sierra Capital LLC boosted its holdings in Johnson & Johnson by 0.5% in the fourth quarter. Sierra Capital LLC now owns 8,144 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,685,000 after acquiring an additional 41 shares in the last quarter. Beaird Harris Wealth Management LLC boosted its holdings in Johnson & Johnson by 1.8% in the fourth quarter. Beaird Harris Wealth Management LLC now owns 2,422 shares of the company’s stock worth $501,000 after acquiring an additional 42 shares in the last quarter. Broadleaf Partners LLC boosted its holdings in Johnson & Johnson by 0.6% in the fourth quarter. Broadleaf Partners LLC now owns 7,348 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,521,000 after acquiring an additional 43 shares in the last quarter. Jessup Wealth Management Inc boosted its holdings in Johnson & Johnson by 0.6% in the fourth quarter. Jessup Wealth Management Inc now owns 7,574 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,567,000 after acquiring an additional 44 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Plancorp LLC boosted its holdings in Johnson & Johnson by 0.3% in the fourth quarter. Plancorp LLC now owns 15,889 shares of the company’s stock worth $3,288,000 after acquiring an additional 45 shares in the last quarter. 69.55% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.