Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ) Given Average Rating of "Moderate Buy" by Brokerages

Shares of Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ - Get Free Report) have been given an average recommendation of "Moderate Buy" by the thirteen brokerages that are presently covering the company, MarketBeat Ratings reports. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have assigned a buy rating to the company. The average 1 year price target among analysts that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $175.93.

Several research firms recently commented on JNJ. Daiwa Capital Markets lowered Johnson & Johnson from an "outperform" rating to a "neutral" rating and dropped their price target for the stock from $160.00 to $150.00 in a research report on Tuesday, July 23rd. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price target on Johnson & Johnson from $163.00 to $166.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 16th. TD Cowen dropped their price target on Johnson & Johnson from $195.00 to $185.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, July 18th. Daiwa America lowered Johnson & Johnson from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 23rd. Finally, Citigroup raised their price objective on shares of Johnson & Johnson from $180.00 to $185.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 16th.

Johnson & Johnson Price Performance

Shares of Johnson & Johnson stock traded down $1.46 during trading on Tuesday, reaching $160.14. 5,215,962 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 6,990,604. The company has a market capitalization of $385.41 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 9.98, a P/E/G ratio of 2.90 and a beta of 0.52. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $163.45 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $155.28. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.44, a current ratio of 1.07 and a quick ratio of 0.85. Johnson & Johnson has a 52-week low of $143.13 and a 52-week high of $168.85.

Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, October 15th. The company reported $2.42 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $2.21 by $0.21. The firm had revenue of $22.47 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $22.17 billion. Johnson & Johnson had a return on equity of 35.46% and a net margin of 19.14%. The business's quarterly revenue was up 5.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $2.66 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts expect that Johnson & Johnson will post 9.94 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. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, November 26th will be paid a dividend of $1.24 per share. This represents a $4.96 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.10%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, November 26th. Johnson & Johnson's dividend payout ratio is presently 30.92%.

Insider Activity

In other Johnson & Johnson news, VP Robert J. Decker sold 5,635 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Friday, August 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $165.06, for a total transaction of $930,113.10. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now owns 18,973 shares in the company, valued at $3,131,683.38. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Insiders own 0.16% of the company's stock.

Institutional Trading of Johnson & Johnson

A number of hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of JNJ. International Assets Investment Management LLC lifted its holdings in Johnson & Johnson by 20,130.0% during the third quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 3,454,473 shares of the company's stock worth $559,832,000 after buying an additional 3,437,397 shares during the period. Marshall Wace LLP increased its position in shares of Johnson & Johnson by 506.9% during the second quarter. Marshall Wace LLP now owns 3,884,962 shares of the company's stock worth $567,826,000 after purchasing an additional 3,244,862 shares in the last quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD increased its position in shares of Johnson & Johnson by 16.8% during the first quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 21,834,359 shares of the company's stock worth $3,453,978,000 after purchasing an additional 3,139,499 shares in the last quarter. Ninety One UK Ltd increased its position in shares of Johnson & Johnson by 59.0% during the second quarter. Ninety One UK Ltd now owns 6,708,943 shares of the company's stock worth $980,579,000 after purchasing an additional 2,489,925 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Swedbank AB acquired a new position in shares of Johnson & Johnson during the first quarter worth $331,178,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 69.55% of the company's stock.

About Johnson & Johnson

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.