Virtu Financial LLC Grows Stake in Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ)

Virtu Financial LLC increased its position in shares of Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ - Free Report) by 1,962.6% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 60,104 shares of the company's stock after acquiring an additional 57,190 shares during the period. Johnson & Johnson comprises about 0.5% of Virtu Financial LLC's portfolio, making the stock its 22nd biggest position. Virtu Financial LLC's holdings in Johnson & Johnson were worth $8,692,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Quantbot Technologies LP bought a new stake in shares of Johnson & Johnson in the fourth quarter worth $6,314,000. Beddow Capital Management Inc. grew its position in shares of Johnson & Johnson by 1.4% in the 4th quarter. Beddow Capital Management Inc. now owns 52,555 shares of the company's stock valued at $7,601,000 after buying an additional 725 shares during the last quarter. ZEGA Investments LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Johnson & Johnson in the fourth quarter valued at about $945,000. Millstone Evans Group LLC acquired a new position in shares of Johnson & Johnson in the fourth quarter worth approximately $1,449,000. Finally, Washington Trust Bank boosted its holdings in Johnson & Johnson by 4.5% in the fourth quarter. Washington Trust Bank now owns 19,163 shares of the company's stock valued at $2,771,000 after acquiring an additional 828 shares during the last quarter. 69.55% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insider Activity

In related news, EVP Timothy Schmid sold 403 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $156.15, for a total transaction of $62,928.45. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 15,098 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,357,552.70. The trade was a 2.60 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, VP Robert J. Decker sold 6,999 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $165.88, for a total value of $1,160,994.12. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now owns 21,001 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $3,483,645.88. This represents a 25.00 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 0.16% of the company's stock.

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Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

JNJ has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. Barclays boosted their price target on shares of Johnson & Johnson from $159.00 to $166.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 28th. Guggenheim reaffirmed a "neutral" rating on shares of Johnson & Johnson in a research report on Monday, March 10th. Argus raised Johnson & Johnson to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Friday, January 24th. Morgan Stanley cut their target price on Johnson & Johnson from $175.00 to $163.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, January 23rd. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus lowered their target price on Johnson & Johnson from $170.00 to $155.00 and set a "hold" rating for the company in a report on Thursday, January 23rd. Nine investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have given a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Johnson & Johnson has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $171.33.

Johnson & Johnson Stock Down 1.3 %

NYSE JNJ traded down $2.15 during trading hours on Tuesday, hitting $161.14. The company's stock had a trading volume of 7,455,754 shares, compared to its average volume of 7,088,162. The company has a market capitalization of $388.32 billion, a PE ratio of 24.23, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.56 and a beta of 0.47. The company has a current ratio of 1.11, a quick ratio of 0.86 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.43. Johnson & Johnson has a 52 week low of $140.68 and a 52 week high of $169.99. The company's 50-day simple moving average is $157.37 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $156.16.

Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data 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 analysts' expectations of $22.44 billion. Johnson & Johnson had a return on equity of 34.24% and a net margin of 18.20%. The business's revenue was up 5.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the business earned $2.29 EPS. Research analysts anticipate that Johnson & Johnson will post 10.58 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Johnson & Johnson Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, March 4th. Investors of record on Tuesday, February 18th were given a dividend of $1.24 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, February 18th. This represents a $4.96 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.08%. Johnson & Johnson's payout ratio is currently 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.