Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ) Trading 1.5% Higher - What's Next?

Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ - Get Free Report) traded up 1.5% during mid-day trading on Monday . The stock traded as high as $169.90 and last traded at $169.16. 4,082,648 shares changed hands during trading, a decline of 42% from the average session volume of 7,022,617 shares. The stock had previously closed at $166.69.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts have recently weighed in on JNJ shares. Argus upgraded Johnson & Johnson to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Friday, January 24th. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price objective on Johnson & Johnson from $166.00 to $152.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a report on Thursday, January 23rd. Guggenheim restated a "neutral" rating on shares of Johnson & Johnson in a research report on Monday. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Johnson & Johnson from a "buy" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Saturday, January 25th. Finally, Wolfe Research started coverage on shares of Johnson & Johnson in a report on Friday, November 15th. They issued an "outperform" rating and a $190.00 price objective on the stock. 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 company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Johnson & Johnson presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $171.33.

Johnson & Johnson Trading Up 0.2 %

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 stock's 50 day simple moving average is $154.23 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $156.34. The stock has a market capitalization of $393.01 billion, a PE ratio of 24.55, a PEG ratio of 2.56 and a beta of 0.47.

Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, January 22nd. The company reported $2.04 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate 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 during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $22.44 billion. During the same period last year, the firm earned $2.29 EPS. Johnson & Johnson's revenue for the quarter was up 5.3% on a year-over-year basis. On average, sell-side analysts expect that Johnson & Johnson will post 10.58 EPS for the current year.

Johnson & Johnson Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, March 4th. Investors of record on Tuesday, February 18th were paid a $1.24 dividend. This represents a $4.96 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.04%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, February 18th. Johnson & Johnson's dividend payout ratio is currently 74.59%.

Insider Activity at Johnson & Johnson

In related news, EVP Timothy Schmid sold 403 shares of the company's 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 sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 15,098 shares of the company's stock, valued at $2,357,552.70. This represents a 2.60 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, VP Robert J. Decker sold 6,999 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on 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 sale, the vice president now owns 21,001 shares in the company, valued at $3,483,645.88. The trade was a 25.00 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.16% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Trading of Johnson & Johnson

Institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. IFS Advisors LLC boosted its position in shares of Johnson & Johnson by 138.9% during the fourth quarter. IFS Advisors LLC now owns 172 shares of the company's stock valued at $25,000 after buying an additional 100 shares during the last quarter. WealthTrak Capital Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Johnson & Johnson in the fourth quarter worth approximately $26,000. Mountain Hill Investment Partners Corp. purchased a new position in shares of Johnson & Johnson during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $29,000. Bay Harbor Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in Johnson & Johnson during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $32,000. Finally, Conquis Financial LLC purchased a new stake in Johnson & Johnson in the fourth quarter worth approximately $33,000. 69.55% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Johnson & Johnson

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.