Simplify Asset Management Inc. Boosts Holdings in Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ)

Simplify Asset Management Inc. boosted its holdings in Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ) by 187.4% during the third quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The fund owned 67,601 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 44,081 shares during the period. Johnson & Johnson comprises 0.5% of Simplify Asset Management Inc.’s holdings, making the stock its 21st biggest position. Simplify Asset Management Inc.’s holdings in Johnson & Johnson were worth $10,955,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Innealta Capital LLC acquired a new position in Johnson & Johnson during the second quarter worth $27,000. Highline Wealth Partners LLC purchased a new position in Johnson & Johnson during the 3rd quarter valued at about $31,000. Mowery & Schoenfeld Wealth Management LLC increased its stake in Johnson & Johnson by 58.7% during the third quarter. Mowery & Schoenfeld Wealth Management LLC now owns 246 shares of the company’s stock worth $40,000 after purchasing an additional 91 shares during the period. Morton Brown Family Wealth LLC boosted its stake in shares of Johnson & Johnson by 400.0% in the third quarter. Morton Brown Family Wealth LLC now owns 250 shares of the company’s stock valued at $41,000 after purchasing an additional 200 shares during the period. Finally, MFA Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Johnson & Johnson in the second quarter valued at approximately $43,000. 69.55% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling at Johnson & Johnson

In other news, VP Robert J. Decker sold 5,635 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, August 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $165.06, for a total value of $930,113.10. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now directly owns 18,973 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,131,683.38. This trade represents a 22.90 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. 0.16% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Johnson & Johnson Stock Performance

Shares of Johnson & Johnson stock traded up $1.12 during trading on Friday, reaching $152.99. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 2,654,843 shares, compared to its average volume of 6,978,188. The firm has a market cap of $368.34 billion, a PE ratio of 22.04, a P/E/G ratio of 2.72 and a beta of 0.53. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $161.56 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $155.97. The company has a current ratio of 1.03, a quick ratio of 0.79 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.45. Johnson & Johnson has a fifty-two week low of $143.13 and a fifty-two week high of $168.85.

Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, October 15th. The company reported $2.42 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.21 by $0.21. The business had revenue of $22.47 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $22.17 billion. Johnson & Johnson had a net margin of 19.14% and a return on equity of 35.45%. The business’s revenue was up 5.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $2.66 earnings per share. On average, analysts forecast that Johnson & Johnson will post 9.93 EPS for the current year.

Johnson & Johnson Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 10th. Investors of record on Tuesday, November 26th will be given a $1.24 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, November 26th. This represents a $4.96 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.24%. Johnson & Johnson’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 71.78%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages have commented on JNJ. Sanford C. Bernstein raised their price target on shares of Johnson & Johnson from $161.00 to $171.00 in a research report on Thursday, July 18th. StockNews.com raised Johnson & Johnson from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Saturday, September 14th. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price objective on Johnson & Johnson from $163.00 to $166.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 16th. The Goldman Sachs Group decreased their price target on shares of Johnson & Johnson from $160.00 to $155.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, July 19th. Finally, Daiwa Capital Markets downgraded shares of Johnson & Johnson from an “outperform” rating to a “neutral” rating and dropped their price objective for the company from $160.00 to $150.00 in a research report on Tuesday, July 23rd. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $175.94.

Johnson & Johnson Profile

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.