Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ) Shares Sold by Avantax Advisory Services Inc.

Avantax Advisory Services Inc. lessened its holdings in shares of Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ - Free Report) by 3.2% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 193,801 shares of the company's stock after selling 6,334 shares during the period. Avantax Advisory Services Inc.'s holdings in Johnson & Johnson were worth $28,028,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the business. Knuff & Co LLC raised its position in shares of Johnson & Johnson by 0.7% during the 3rd quarter. Knuff & Co LLC now owns 9,466 shares of the company's stock worth $1,534,000 after acquiring an additional 64 shares in the last quarter. Vertex Planning Partners LLC raised its position in shares of Johnson & Johnson by 1.3% during the 3rd quarter. Vertex Planning Partners LLC now owns 5,211 shares of the company's stock worth $844,000 after acquiring an additional 65 shares in the last quarter. Werba Rubin Papier Wealth Management increased its position in Johnson & Johnson by 3.3% during the fourth quarter. Werba Rubin Papier Wealth Management now owns 2,080 shares of the company's stock worth $301,000 after buying an additional 66 shares during the period. Denali Advisors LLC increased its position in Johnson & Johnson by 1.3% during the fourth quarter. Denali Advisors LLC now owns 5,128 shares of the company's stock worth $742,000 after buying an additional 67 shares during the period. Finally, Sage Mountain Advisors LLC increased its position in Johnson & Johnson by 0.5% during the fourth quarter. Sage Mountain Advisors LLC now owns 14,564 shares of the company's stock worth $2,106,000 after buying an additional 67 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 69.55% of the company's stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, Director Mark A. Weinberger acquired 1,000 shares of Johnson & Johnson stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, December 12th. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $147.22 per share, with a total value of $147,220.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director now owns 1,000 shares in the company, valued at $147,220. This trade represents a ∞ increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, EVP Timothy Schmid sold 403 shares of Johnson & Johnson stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $156.15, for a total value of $62,928.45. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 15,098 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,357,552.70. This represents a 2.60 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.16% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms have commented on JNJ. Citigroup cut their price target on Johnson & Johnson from $185.00 to $175.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, December 11th. Raymond James cut their price target on Johnson & Johnson from $170.00 to $165.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, January 23rd. Argus raised Johnson & Johnson to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Friday, January 24th. Wolfe Research began coverage on Johnson & Johnson in a research report on Friday, November 15th. They set an "outperform" rating and a $190.00 price target on the stock. Finally, Bank of America lifted their price target on Johnson & Johnson from $159.00 to $171.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Wednesday, March 5th. Nine 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. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $171.33.

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Johnson & Johnson Stock Down 1.1 %

Johnson & Johnson stock opened at $165.86 on Wednesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.43, a current ratio of 1.11 and a quick ratio of 0.86. Johnson & Johnson has a 1-year low of $140.68 and a 1-year high of $169.99. The company has a market cap of $399.33 billion, a PE ratio of 24.94, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.56 and a beta of 0.47. The stock's 50 day moving average price is $153.86 and its 200 day moving average price is $156.29.

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 (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.99 by $0.05. The firm had revenue of $22.52 billion during 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%. Johnson & Johnson's revenue was up 5.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $2.29 earnings per share. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Johnson & Johnson will post 10.58 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Johnson & Johnson Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, March 4th. Investors of record on Tuesday, February 18th were issued 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 2.99%. Johnson & Johnson's dividend payout ratio is presently 74.59%.

Johnson & Johnson Company 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.

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