Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ) Holdings Cut by Focused Investors LLC

Focused Investors LLC lowered its position in Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ - Free Report) by 1.8% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 1,170,250 shares of the company's stock after selling 21,900 shares during the period. Johnson & Johnson comprises approximately 5.8% of Focused Investors LLC's holdings, making the stock its 4th largest position. Focused Investors LLC's holdings in Johnson & Johnson were worth $189,651,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD grew its holdings in shares of Johnson & Johnson by 16.8% in the first quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 21,834,359 shares of the company's stock valued at $3,453,978,000 after purchasing an additional 3,139,499 shares in the last quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA increased its holdings in shares of Johnson & Johnson by 10.8% in the 2nd quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 18,780,645 shares of the company's stock worth $2,744,979,000 after buying an additional 1,831,751 shares during the last quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. raised its position in shares of Johnson & Johnson by 5.5% during the 2nd quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 14,374,397 shares of the company's stock valued at $2,100,427,000 after buying an additional 754,200 shares in the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP lifted its holdings in shares of Johnson & Johnson by 16.2% in the 2nd quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 13,147,352 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,921,565,000 after acquiring an additional 1,829,257 shares during the last quarter. Finally, American Century Companies Inc. grew its position in Johnson & Johnson by 5.8% in the second quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 8,014,213 shares of the company's stock worth $1,171,357,000 after acquiring an additional 437,637 shares in the last quarter. 69.55% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Johnson & Johnson Trading Up 1.4 %

NYSE:JNJ traded up $2.13 on Friday, reaching $154.00. The company's stock had a trading volume of 11,328,515 shares, compared to its average volume of 6,621,219. Johnson & Johnson has a 12-month low of $143.13 and a 12-month high of $168.85. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $161.35 and a 200 day moving average price of $156.10. The firm has a market cap of $370.77 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.29, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.74 and a beta of 0.53. The company has a quick ratio of 0.79, a current ratio of 1.03 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.45.

Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, October 15th. The company reported $2.42 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.21 by $0.21. Johnson & Johnson had a net margin of 19.14% and a return on equity of 35.45%. The firm had revenue of $22.47 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $22.17 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $2.66 EPS. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 5.2% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities analysts anticipate that Johnson & Johnson will post 9.93 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Johnson & Johnson Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 10th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, November 26th will be issued a $1.24 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, November 26th. This represents a $4.96 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.22%. Johnson & Johnson's payout ratio is currently 71.78%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, VP Robert J. Decker sold 5,635 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, August 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $165.06, for a total value 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 22.90 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. 0.16% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts recently weighed in on JNJ shares. Guggenheim increased their price target on Johnson & Johnson from $156.00 to $162.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a report on Wednesday, November 6th. StockNews.com raised shares of Johnson & Johnson from a "buy" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Saturday, September 14th. 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. Morgan Stanley boosted their price objective on Johnson & Johnson from $169.00 to $175.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a report on Wednesday, October 16th. Finally, Daiwa Capital Markets lowered Johnson & Johnson from an "outperform" rating to a "neutral" rating and reduced their target price for the stock from $160.00 to $150.00 in a research note on Tuesday, July 23rd. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $175.94.

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.