Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ) Trading 0.2% Higher - Time to Buy?

Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ - Get Free Report) shares shot up 0.2% on Monday . The company traded as high as $155.33 and last traded at $154.35. 1,039,827 shares traded hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 85% from the average session volume of 6,990,454 shares. The stock had previously closed at $154.00.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts recently issued reports on the company. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price objective on Johnson & Johnson from $163.00 to $166.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a report on Wednesday, October 16th. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Johnson & Johnson from a "buy" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Saturday, September 14th. Royal Bank of Canada lifted their target price on Johnson & Johnson from $178.00 to $181.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 16th. Daiwa Capital Markets lowered shares of Johnson & Johnson from an "outperform" rating to a "neutral" rating and lowered their price target for the company from $160.00 to $150.00 in a report on Tuesday, July 23rd. Finally, Morgan Stanley raised their price objective on shares of Johnson & Johnson from $169.00 to $175.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a report on Wednesday, October 16th. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $175.94.

Johnson & Johnson Trading Up 0.6 %

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.45, a quick ratio of 0.79 and a current ratio of 1.03. The stock has a market capitalization of $373.16 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.34, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.74 and a beta of 0.53. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $161.35 and a 200 day simple moving average of $156.13.

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

Johnson & Johnson Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 10th. Investors of record on Tuesday, November 26th will be issued a $1.24 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, November 26th. This represents a $4.96 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.20%. Johnson & Johnson's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 71.78%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, VP Robert J. Decker sold 5,635 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, August 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $165.06, for a total transaction of $930,113.10. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now owns 18,973 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $3,131,683.38. The trade was a 22.90 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Company insiders own 0.16% of the company's stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Johnson & Johnson

A number of large investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Innealta Capital LLC purchased a new stake in Johnson & Johnson during the 2nd quarter valued at about $27,000. Highline Wealth Partners LLC bought a new stake in shares of Johnson & Johnson during the 3rd quarter valued at $31,000. RPg Family Wealth Advisory LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Johnson & Johnson in the 3rd quarter worth about $35,000. Mowery & Schoenfeld Wealth Management LLC boosted its stake in Johnson & Johnson by 58.7% during the third quarter. Mowery & Schoenfeld Wealth Management LLC now owns 246 shares of the company's stock worth $40,000 after acquiring an additional 91 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Activest Wealth Management bought a new position in shares of Johnson & Johnson during the third quarter valued at approximately $40,000. 69.55% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.

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