Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ) Given New $175.00 Price Target at Morgan Stanley

Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ) had its price objective hoisted by stock analysts at Morgan Stanley from $169.00 to $175.00 in a research note issued on Wednesday, Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has an “equal weight” rating on the stock. Morgan Stanley’s price target would indicate a potential upside of 6.62% from the stock’s current price.

A number of other brokerages have also weighed in on JNJ. Royal Bank of Canada lifted their target price on shares of Johnson & Johnson from $175.00 to $178.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 8th. Cantor Fitzgerald reaffirmed an “overweight” rating and set a $215.00 target price on shares of Johnson & Johnson in a research note on Thursday, October 10th. TD Securities cut their target price on shares of Johnson & Johnson from $195.00 to $185.00 in a research note on Thursday, July 18th. TD Cowen cut their target price on shares of Johnson & Johnson from $195.00 to $185.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, July 18th. Finally, Daiwa Capital Markets lowered shares of Johnson & Johnson from an “outperform” rating to a “neutral” rating and cut their target price for the company from $160.00 to $150.00 in a research note on Tuesday, July 23rd. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, six have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $174.77.

Johnson & Johnson Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:JNJ opened at $164.14 on Wednesday. The stock has a market cap of $395.02 billion, a PE ratio of 10.23, a PEG ratio of 2.65 and a beta of 0.52. The company’s fifty day moving average is $162.70 and its 200 day moving average is $154.52. Johnson & Johnson has a 52 week low of $143.13 and a 52 week high of $168.85. The company has a quick ratio of 0.85, a current ratio of 1.07 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.44.

Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, October 15th. The company reported $2.42 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.21 by $0.21. The company had revenue of $22.47 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $22.17 billion. Johnson & Johnson had a net margin of 46.34% and a return on equity of 36.60%. The firm’s revenue was up 5.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $2.66 EPS. Research analysts anticipate that Johnson & Johnson will post 10 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Johnson & Johnson

In other Johnson & Johnson news, VP Robert J. Decker sold 5,635 shares of the company’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 sale, the vice president now directly owns 18,973 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,131,683.38. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. 0.16% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Johnson & Johnson

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Innealta Capital LLC bought a new position in shares of Johnson & Johnson during the second quarter worth $27,000. MFA Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Johnson & Johnson during the second quarter worth $43,000. Fairfield Financial Advisors LTD bought a new position in shares of Johnson & Johnson during the second quarter worth $46,000. Fairway Wealth LLC raised its stake in Johnson & Johnson by 217.1% during the second quarter. Fairway Wealth LLC now owns 333 shares of the company’s stock valued at $49,000 after purchasing an additional 228 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Quarry LP purchased a new stake in Johnson & Johnson during the second quarter valued at $49,000. Institutional investors own 69.55% 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.