Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ) Stock Position Increased by Ardent Capital Management Inc.

Ardent Capital Management Inc. raised its holdings in Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ - Free Report) by 2.1% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 149,955 shares of the company's stock after purchasing an additional 3,096 shares during the period. Johnson & Johnson accounts for approximately 9.9% of Ardent Capital Management Inc.'s portfolio, making the stock its 3rd largest holding. Ardent Capital Management Inc.'s holdings in Johnson & Johnson were worth $21,686,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the company. Vinva Investment Management Ltd lifted its holdings in shares of 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 purchasing an additional 7,110 shares in the last quarter. Financial Counselors Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Johnson & Johnson by 5.3% during the third quarter. Financial Counselors Inc. now owns 185,093 shares of the company's stock valued at $29,996,000 after buying an additional 9,309 shares during the period. Oregon Pacific Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Johnson & Johnson during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $949,000. Meridian Investment Counsel Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Johnson & Johnson by 19.6% during the third quarter. Meridian Investment Counsel Inc. now owns 22,629 shares of the company's stock valued at $3,667,000 after buying an additional 3,710 shares during the period. Finally, Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. lifted 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 valued at $2,858,543,000 after buying an additional 102,502 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 69.55% of the company's stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director Mark A. Weinberger bought 1,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, December 12th. The shares were purchased 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 in the company, valued at approximately $147,220. This represents a ∞ increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Timothy Schmid sold 403 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $156.15, for a total transaction of $62,928.45. Following the transaction, 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 disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 0.16% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts recently issued reports on the stock. Stifel Nicolaus reduced their price objective on shares of Johnson & Johnson from $170.00 to $155.00 and set a "hold" rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, January 23rd. Guggenheim upped their price objective on shares of Johnson & Johnson from $162.00 to $166.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. Citigroup reduced their price objective on shares of Johnson & Johnson from $185.00 to $175.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, December 11th. Royal Bank of Canada reaffirmed an "outperform" rating and set a $181.00 price target on shares of Johnson & Johnson in a research report on Wednesday, February 19th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price objective on shares of Johnson & Johnson from $166.00 to $152.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, January 23rd. Nine equities research 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, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $170.67.

Johnson & Johnson Trading Up 1.7 %

NYSE JNJ opened at $162.35 on Monday. Johnson & Johnson has a 12 month low of $140.68 and a 12 month high of $168.85. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.43, a current ratio of 1.11 and a quick ratio of 0.86. The company has a market capitalization of $390.87 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 24.41, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.56 and a beta of 0.52. The company's fifty day moving average price is $148.93 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $155.86.

Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, January 22nd. The company reported $2.04 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.99 by $0.05. Johnson & Johnson had a net margin of 18.20% and a return on equity of 34.24%. The company had revenue of $22.52 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $22.44 billion. During the same period last year, the firm posted $2.29 EPS. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 5.3% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, research analysts predict that Johnson & Johnson will post 10.58 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Johnson & Johnson Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, March 4th. Investors of record on Tuesday, February 18th will be issued 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 3.06%. Johnson & Johnson's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 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.

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