Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ) Shares Sold by Mizuho Securities USA LLC

Mizuho Securities USA LLC decreased its stake in shares of Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ - Free Report) by 76.7% in the third quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 43,317 shares of the company's stock after selling 142,252 shares during the quarter. Mizuho Securities USA LLC's holdings in Johnson & Johnson were worth $7,020,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the business. Meridian Financial Partners LLC purchased a new stake in Johnson & Johnson during the second quarter valued at $1,626,000. Lmcg Investments LLC grew its holdings in Johnson & Johnson by 32.7% during the third quarter. Lmcg Investments LLC now owns 87,162 shares of the company's stock valued at $14,125,000 after purchasing an additional 21,471 shares during the period. WealthPlan Investment Management LLC grew its holdings in Johnson & Johnson by 7.3% during the third quarter. WealthPlan Investment Management LLC now owns 61,691 shares of the company's stock valued at $9,998,000 after purchasing an additional 4,174 shares during the period. Cooper Haims Advisors LLC boosted its stake in shares of Johnson & Johnson by 6.4% in the first quarter. Cooper Haims Advisors LLC now owns 3,358 shares of the company's stock worth $531,000 after acquiring an additional 201 shares during the period. Finally, Meridian Investment Counsel Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Johnson & Johnson by 19.6% in the third quarter. Meridian Investment Counsel Inc. now owns 22,629 shares of the company's stock worth $3,667,000 after acquiring an additional 3,710 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 69.55% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts have recently weighed in on JNJ shares. StockNews.com raised Johnson & Johnson from a "buy" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Saturday, September 14th. Cantor Fitzgerald reaffirmed an "overweight" rating and issued a $215.00 price objective on shares of Johnson & Johnson in a research note on Wednesday, October 16th. Morgan Stanley boosted their target price on Johnson & Johnson from $169.00 to $175.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 16th. Citigroup boosted their target price on Johnson & Johnson from $180.00 to $185.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 16th. Finally, Daiwa America downgraded Johnson & Johnson from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 23rd. 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, the stock currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $175.94.

Johnson & Johnson Trading Up 1.4 %

Shares of NYSE JNJ traded up $2.13 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $154.00. The company's stock had a trading volume of 11,328,515 shares, compared to its average volume of 6,621,219. The company has a current ratio of 1.03, a quick ratio of 0.79 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.45. The business's 50 day moving average is $161.35 and its two-hundred day moving average is $156.10. Johnson & Johnson has a 12-month low of $143.13 and a 12-month high of $168.85. The firm has a market cap of $370.77 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.29, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.74 and a beta of 0.53.

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

Johnson & Johnson Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 10th. Investors of record on Tuesday, November 26th will be paid a $1.24 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, November 26th. This represents a $4.96 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.22%. Johnson & Johnson's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 71.78%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, VP Robert J. Decker sold 5,635 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Friday, August 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $165.06, for a total value of $930,113.10. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now owns 18,973 shares in the company, valued at $3,131,683.38. This trade represents a 22.90 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. 0.16% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Johnson & Johnson 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.