Blue Trust Inc. Grows Stock Holdings in Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ)

Blue Trust Inc. increased its position in Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ - Free Report) by 55.7% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 76,342 shares of the company's stock after buying an additional 27,308 shares during the quarter. Blue Trust Inc.'s holdings in Johnson & Johnson were worth $11,041,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of JNJ. Strategic Investment Advisors MI grew its stake in shares of Johnson & Johnson by 2.8% in the 4th quarter. Strategic Investment Advisors MI now owns 3,686 shares of the company's stock valued at $533,000 after buying an additional 100 shares during the period. Narwhal Capital Management raised its holdings in Johnson & Johnson by 2.2% during the 4th quarter. Narwhal Capital Management now owns 100,016 shares of the company's stock valued at $14,464,000 after buying an additional 2,150 shares during the last quarter. ETF Portfolio Partners Inc. grew its position in shares of Johnson & Johnson by 7.1% in the 4th quarter. ETF Portfolio Partners Inc. now owns 1,779 shares of the company's stock worth $257,000 after buying an additional 118 shares during the last quarter. Stablepoint Partners LLC raised its position in shares of Johnson & Johnson by 1.1% in the 4th quarter. Stablepoint Partners LLC now owns 33,465 shares of the company's stock worth $4,840,000 after acquiring an additional 371 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Clarendon Private LLC purchased a new stake in Johnson & Johnson during the 4th quarter valued at about $276,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 69.55% of the company's stock.

Insider Activity

In other Johnson & Johnson news, Director Mark A. Weinberger acquired 1,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, December 12th. The stock was bought at an average price of $147.22 per share, with a total value of $147,220.00. Following the purchase, the director now owns 1,000 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $147,220. This trade represents a ∞ increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Insiders own 0.16% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages recently commented on JNJ. Morgan Stanley decreased their target price on Johnson & Johnson from $175.00 to $163.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, January 23rd. Leerink Partners cut their price objective on shares of Johnson & Johnson from $182.00 to $169.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, January 23rd. Bank of America dropped their target price on shares of Johnson & Johnson from $160.00 to $159.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, January 23rd. Argus upgraded Johnson & Johnson to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Friday, January 24th. Finally, Barclays upped their price target on Johnson & Johnson from $159.00 to $166.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a report on Tuesday. Nine analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have given a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Johnson & Johnson presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $170.44.

Johnson & Johnson Price Performance

Shares of NYSE JNJ traded up $2.74 during trading hours on Thursday, hitting $153.89. 3,563,013 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 9,399,796. The company has a market cap of $370.51 billion, a PE ratio of 23.14, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.45 and a beta of 0.51. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.45, a quick ratio of 0.79 and a current ratio of 1.03. The company's fifty day simple moving average is $147.73 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $156.10. Johnson & Johnson has a 1-year low of $140.68 and a 1-year high of $168.85.

Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, January 22nd. The company reported $2.04 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.99 by $0.05. The business had revenue of $22.52 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations 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 period last year, the company posted $2.29 earnings per share. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Johnson & Johnson will post 10.56 EPS for the current year.

Johnson & Johnson Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, March 4th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, February 18th will be issued a dividend of $1.24 per share. This represents a $4.96 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.22%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, February 18th. Johnson & Johnson's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 74.59%.

Johnson & Johnson Profile

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.