BNP PARIBAS ASSET MANAGEMENT Holding S.A. Sells 267,426 Shares of Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ)

BNP PARIBAS ASSET MANAGEMENT Holding S.A. lowered its holdings in shares of Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ) by 50.0% in the 3rd quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm owned 267,826 shares of the company’s stock after selling 267,426 shares during the quarter. BNP PARIBAS ASSET MANAGEMENT Holding S.A.’s holdings in Johnson & Johnson were worth $43,404,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the business. Meridian Financial Partners LLC bought a new stake in Johnson & Johnson during the second quarter worth approximately $1,626,000. Meridian Investment Counsel Inc. increased its position in shares of Johnson & Johnson by 19.6% during the 3rd quarter. Meridian Investment Counsel Inc. now owns 22,629 shares of the company’s stock valued at $3,667,000 after purchasing an additional 3,710 shares during the last quarter. Sheaff Brock Investment Advisors LLC raised its holdings in Johnson & Johnson by 137.2% during the 3rd quarter. Sheaff Brock Investment Advisors LLC now owns 43,568 shares of the company’s stock valued at $7,061,000 after buying an additional 25,203 shares during the period. Lmcg Investments LLC lifted its position in Johnson & Johnson by 32.7% in the third quarter. Lmcg Investments LLC now owns 87,162 shares of the company’s stock worth $14,125,000 after buying an additional 21,471 shares during the last quarter. Finally, WealthPlan Investment Management LLC boosted its stake in Johnson & Johnson by 7.3% during the third quarter. WealthPlan Investment Management LLC now owns 61,691 shares of the company’s stock worth $9,998,000 after buying an additional 4,174 shares during the period. 69.55% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company raised their target price on shares of Johnson & Johnson from $163.00 to $166.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 16th. Wolfe Research began coverage on Johnson & Johnson in a research report on Friday, November 15th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $190.00 target price for the company. Royal Bank of Canada upped their target price on Johnson & Johnson from $178.00 to $181.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 16th. Cantor Fitzgerald reissued an “overweight” rating and set a $215.00 price target on shares of Johnson & Johnson in a research note on Wednesday, October 16th. Finally, Citigroup increased their target price on Johnson & Johnson from $180.00 to $185.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 16th. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $175.94.

Johnson & Johnson Trading Up 1.8 %

NYSE:JNJ opened at $155.79 on Friday. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $160.41 and a 200-day simple moving average of $156.17. Johnson & Johnson has a one year low of $143.13 and a one year high of $168.85. The firm has a market cap of $375.08 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.55, a P/E/G ratio of 2.72 and a beta of 0.53. 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 posted its earnings results on Tuesday, October 15th. The company reported $2.42 earnings per share 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 company had revenue of $22.47 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $22.17 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $2.66 earnings per share. Johnson & Johnson’s revenue was up 5.2% on a year-over-year basis. Equities analysts anticipate that Johnson & Johnson will post 9.93 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Johnson & Johnson Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 10th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, November 26th will be issued 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 3.18%. Johnson & Johnson’s dividend payout ratio is presently 71.78%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Johnson & Johnson

In related news, VP Robert J. Decker sold 5,635 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, August 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $165.06, for a total transaction of $930,113.10. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now owns 18,973 shares in the company, valued at $3,131,683.38. The trade was a 22.90 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Insiders own 0.16% of the company’s stock.

Johnson & Johnson Company 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.