Sawgrass Asset Management LLC Sells 1,966 Shares of Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ)

Sawgrass Asset Management LLC lessened its position in Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ) by 2.9% in the 3rd quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The fund owned 65,797 shares of the company’s stock after selling 1,966 shares during the period. Sawgrass Asset Management LLC’s holdings in Johnson & Johnson were worth $10,663,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. International Assets Investment Management LLC boosted its position in shares of Johnson & Johnson by 20,130.0% during the third quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 3,454,473 shares of the company’s stock valued at $559,832,000 after buying an additional 3,437,397 shares during the period. Marshall Wace LLP lifted its stake in shares of Johnson & Johnson by 506.9% during the 2nd quarter. Marshall Wace LLP now owns 3,884,962 shares of the company’s stock worth $567,826,000 after acquiring an additional 3,244,862 shares during the last quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD boosted its holdings in Johnson & Johnson by 16.8% during the 1st quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 21,834,359 shares of the company’s stock valued at $3,453,978,000 after acquiring an additional 3,139,499 shares during the period. Ninety One UK Ltd grew its position in Johnson & Johnson by 59.0% in the 2nd quarter. Ninety One UK Ltd now owns 6,708,943 shares of the company’s stock valued at $980,579,000 after acquiring an additional 2,489,925 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Swedbank AB purchased a new stake in Johnson & Johnson in the first quarter worth $331,178,000. 69.55% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Johnson & Johnson Trading Up 1.4 %

NYSE JNJ opened at $154.00 on Friday. Johnson & Johnson has a 52 week low of $143.13 and a 52 week high of $168.85. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $161.35 and a 200 day moving average price of $156.10. The company has a quick ratio of 0.79, a current ratio of 1.03 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.45. The firm has a market cap of $370.77 billion, a PE ratio of 22.29, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.74 and a beta of 0.53.

Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, October 15th. The company reported $2.42 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.21 by $0.21. Johnson & Johnson had a return on equity of 35.45% and a net margin of 19.14%. The business had revenue of $22.47 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $22.17 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $2.66 earnings per share. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 5.2% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Johnson & Johnson will post 9.93 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Johnson & Johnson Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 10th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, November 26th will be issued a dividend of $1.24 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, November 26th. This represents a $4.96 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.22%. Johnson & Johnson’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 71.78%.

Insider Activity at Johnson & Johnson

In other Johnson & Johnson news, VP Robert J. Decker sold 5,635 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, August 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $165.06, for a total value of $930,113.10. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now owns 18,973 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,131,683.38. This trade represents a 22.90 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. 0.16% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

JNJ has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. Daiwa Capital Markets cut shares of Johnson & Johnson from an “outperform” rating to a “neutral” rating and cut their price target for the stock from $160.00 to $150.00 in a report on Tuesday, July 23rd. Citigroup lifted their price target on shares of Johnson & Johnson from $180.00 to $185.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 16th. StockNews.com raised Johnson & Johnson from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Saturday, September 14th. Royal Bank of Canada upped their target price on Johnson & Johnson from $178.00 to $181.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 16th. Finally, Cantor Fitzgerald restated an “overweight” rating and set a $215.00 price target on shares of Johnson & Johnson in a research note on Wednesday, October 16th. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $175.94.

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.