Avity Investment Management Inc. Has $34.46 Million Stock Holdings in Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ)

Avity Investment Management Inc. trimmed its stake in shares of Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ) by 1.6% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 238,305 shares of the company’s stock after selling 3,912 shares during the quarter. Johnson & Johnson accounts for 2.7% of Avity Investment Management Inc.’s portfolio, making the stock its 17th largest holding. Avity Investment Management Inc.’s holdings in Johnson & Johnson were worth $34,464,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of JNJ. State Street Corp grew its position in Johnson & Johnson by 0.9% in the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 134,245,811 shares of the company’s stock valued at $21,755,874,000 after acquiring an additional 1,154,088 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of Johnson & Johnson by 1.8% in the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 56,106,884 shares of the company’s stock worth $9,064,149,000 after purchasing an additional 1,004,763 shares during the last quarter. FMR LLC increased its position in shares of Johnson & Johnson by 7.4% during the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 18,316,920 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,968,440,000 after purchasing an additional 1,265,748 shares in the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. lifted its holdings in Johnson & Johnson by 0.6% during the 3rd quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 17,639,368 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,858,543,000 after purchasing an additional 102,502 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Franklin Resources Inc. boosted its position in Johnson & Johnson by 11.4% in the third quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 16,840,069 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,721,355,000 after buying an additional 1,729,281 shares in the last quarter. 69.55% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Johnson & Johnson Price Performance

JNJ opened at $147.78 on Friday. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $148.86 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $156.01. The firm has a market capitalization of $355.79 billion, a PE ratio of 21.39, a P/E/G ratio of 2.30 and a beta of 0.51. Johnson & Johnson has a 52 week low of $140.68 and a 52 week high of $168.85. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.45, a quick ratio of 0.79 and a current ratio of 1.03.

Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, October 15th. The company reported $2.42 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 during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $22.17 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $2.66 earnings per share. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 5.2% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, analysts anticipate that Johnson & Johnson will post 9.94 earnings per share for the current year.

Johnson & Johnson Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, March 4th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, February 18th will be paid a $1.24 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, February 18th. This represents a $4.96 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.36%. Johnson & Johnson’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 71.78%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Johnson & Johnson news, Director Mark A. Weinberger acquired 1,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, December 12th. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $147.22 per share, for a total transaction of $147,220.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 1,000 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $147,220. This trade represents a ∞ increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Corporate insiders own 0.16% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts have recently issued reports on JNJ shares. Wolfe Research started coverage on shares of Johnson & Johnson in a research note on Friday, November 15th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $190.00 target price for the company. Guggenheim lifted their price objective on Johnson & Johnson from $156.00 to $162.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, November 6th. Citigroup decreased their target price on Johnson & Johnson from $185.00 to $175.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, December 11th. StockNews.com downgraded shares of Johnson & Johnson from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday. Finally, Morgan Stanley raised their price objective on shares of Johnson & Johnson from $169.00 to $175.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 16th. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $174.71.

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.