Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ) Stock Price Up 1.1% – What’s Next?

Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ) shares were up 1.1% on Thursday . The stock traded as high as $159.95 and last traded at $159.56. Approximately 1,739,542 shares traded hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 80% from the average daily volume of 8,795,044 shares. The stock had previously closed at $157.89.

Analyst Ratings Changes

JNJ has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. Royal Bank of Canada restated an “outperform” rating and set a $181.00 price target on shares of Johnson & Johnson in a research note on Wednesday. StockNews.com raised Johnson & Johnson from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Saturday, January 25th. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price objective on Johnson & Johnson from $166.00 to $152.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, January 23rd. Argus upgraded Johnson & Johnson to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Friday, January 24th. Finally, Morgan Stanley decreased their price target on Johnson & Johnson from $175.00 to $163.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, January 23rd. Nine research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have assigned a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $170.67.

Johnson & Johnson Price Performance

The stock has a market capitalization of $383.70 billion, a PE ratio of 23.97, a P/E/G ratio of 2.49 and a beta of 0.52. The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $148.34 and its 200 day simple moving average is $155.86. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.43, a current ratio of 1.11 and a quick ratio of 0.86.

Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, January 22nd. The company reported $2.04 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.99 by $0.05. The business had revenue of $22.52 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $22.44 billion. Johnson & Johnson had a net margin of 18.20% and a return on equity of 34.24%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 5.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $2.29 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Johnson & Johnson will post 10.58 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Johnson & Johnson Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, March 4th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, February 18th will be paid a dividend of $1.24 per share. This represents a $4.96 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.11%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, February 18th. Johnson & Johnson’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 74.59%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Johnson & Johnson news, Director Mark A. Weinberger bought 1,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, December 12th. The shares were bought at an average cost of $147.22 per share, with a total value of $147,220.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the director now directly 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 filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, EVP Timothy Schmid sold 403 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $156.15, for a total value of $62,928.45. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 15,098 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,357,552.70. The trade was a 2.60 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.16% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Trading of Johnson & Johnson

Several large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in JNJ. IFS Advisors LLC increased its position in shares of Johnson & Johnson by 138.9% during the fourth quarter. IFS Advisors LLC now owns 172 shares of the company’s stock valued at $25,000 after buying an additional 100 shares during the period. WealthTrak Capital Management LLC bought a new stake in Johnson & Johnson during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Mountain Hill Investment Partners Corp. purchased a new position in shares of Johnson & Johnson during the 4th quarter worth approximately $29,000. Highline Wealth Partners LLC purchased a new position in shares of Johnson & Johnson in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $31,000. Finally, Bay Harbor Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Johnson & Johnson during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $32,000. Institutional investors own 69.55% of the company’s stock.

About Johnson & Johnson

Johnson & Johnson is a holding company, which engages in the research, development, manufacture, and sale of products in the healthcare field. It operates through the Innovative Medicine and MedTech segments. The Innovative Medicine segment focuses on immunology, infectious diseases, neuroscience, oncology, cardiovascular and metabolism, and pulmonary hypertension.