Barclays Forecasts Strong Price Appreciation for Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ) Stock

Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ - Free Report) had its price objective increased by Barclays from $159.00 to $166.00 in a research note released on Tuesday morning,Benzinga reports. They currently have an equal weight rating on the stock.

Other equities analysts have also recently issued reports about the company. Citigroup reduced their target price on Johnson & Johnson from $185.00 to $175.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, December 11th. StockNews.com raised shares of Johnson & Johnson from a "buy" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Saturday. Bank of America decreased their target price on shares of Johnson & Johnson from $160.00 to $159.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, January 23rd. Raymond James reduced their price target on shares of Johnson & Johnson from $170.00 to $165.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, January 23rd. Finally, Morgan Stanley decreased their price target on Johnson & Johnson from $175.00 to $163.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, January 23rd. Nine equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have issued a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Johnson & Johnson currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $170.44.

Johnson & Johnson Trading Down 1.5 %

Shares of NYSE JNJ traded down $2.26 during midday trading on Tuesday, reaching $150.63. 9,355,245 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 9,707,989. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $147.81 and a 200-day moving average price of $156.12. The company has a current ratio of 1.03, a quick ratio of 0.79 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.45. Johnson & Johnson has a 52-week low of $140.68 and a 52-week high of $168.85. The company has a market capitalization of $362.65 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.65, a P/E/G ratio of 2.45 and a beta of 0.51.

Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, January 22nd. The company reported $2.04 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.99 by $0.05. The business had revenue of $22.52 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $22.44 billion. Johnson & Johnson had a net margin of 18.20% and a return on equity of 34.35%. The business's quarterly revenue was up 5.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $2.29 EPS. Equities research analysts expect that Johnson & Johnson will post 10.56 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Johnson & Johnson Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced 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 3.29%. Johnson & Johnson's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 74.59%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Johnson & Johnson news, Director Mark A. Weinberger acquired 1,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, December 12th. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $147.22 per share, for a total transaction of $147,220.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director now directly owns 1,000 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $147,220. This represents a ∞ increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Insiders own 0.16% of the company's stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Johnson & Johnson

Hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Vinva Investment Management Ltd grew its stake in Johnson & Johnson by 6.8% in the third quarter. Vinva Investment Management Ltd now owns 111,448 shares of the company's stock valued at $17,988,000 after acquiring an additional 7,110 shares during the period. Financial Counselors Inc. increased its position in Johnson & Johnson by 5.3% during the third quarter. Financial Counselors Inc. now owns 185,093 shares of the company's stock worth $29,996,000 after buying an additional 9,309 shares during the last quarter. Meridian Investment Counsel Inc. boosted its stake 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 worth $3,667,000 after acquiring an additional 3,710 shares during the period. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. increased its stake in shares of Johnson & Johnson by 0.6% during the third quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 17,639,368 shares of the company's stock worth $2,858,543,000 after purchasing an additional 102,502 shares during the period. Finally, Lord Abbett & CO. LLC acquired a new position in shares of Johnson & Johnson in the third quarter valued at about $69,859,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds 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.