Opus Capital Group LLC Boosts Stock Position in Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ)

Opus Capital Group LLC lifted its stake in shares of Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ - Free Report) by 79.2% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 3,939 shares of the company's stock after purchasing an additional 1,741 shares during the period. Opus Capital Group LLC's holdings in Johnson & Johnson were worth $570,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other large investors have also made changes to their positions in JNJ. State Street Corp raised its stake in Johnson & Johnson by 0.9% during the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 134,245,811 shares of the company's stock worth $21,755,874,000 after purchasing an additional 1,154,088 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC raised its position in shares of Johnson & Johnson by 1.8% during the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 56,106,884 shares of the company's stock valued at $9,064,149,000 after buying an additional 1,004,763 shares during the period. FMR LLC lifted its holdings in Johnson & Johnson by 7.4% in the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 18,316,920 shares of the company's stock valued at $2,968,440,000 after acquiring an additional 1,265,748 shares during the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. increased its stake in 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 worth $2,858,543,000 after acquiring an additional 102,502 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Franklin Resources Inc. raised its position in Johnson & Johnson by 11.4% in the third quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 16,840,069 shares of the company's stock valued at $2,721,355,000 after purchasing an additional 1,729,281 shares during the period. 69.55% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Johnson & Johnson Stock Up 2.3 %

Shares of NYSE:JNJ traded up $3.71 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $163.39. The stock had a trading volume of 6,875,582 shares, compared to its average volume of 8,893,225. The stock has a market capitalization of $393.37 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 24.54, a P/E/G ratio of 2.53 and a beta of 0.52. The firm's 50 day moving average is $148.61 and its 200-day moving average is $155.89. Johnson & Johnson has a 1 year low of $140.68 and a 1 year high of $168.85. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.43, a quick ratio of 0.86 and a current ratio of 1.11.

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 for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.99 by $0.05. Johnson & Johnson had a return on equity of 34.24% and a net margin of 18.20%. The company had revenue of $22.52 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $22.44 billion. During the same period last year, the firm earned $2.29 earnings per share. Johnson & Johnson's quarterly revenue was up 5.3% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts predict that Johnson & Johnson will post 10.58 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Johnson & Johnson Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, March 4th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, February 18th will be paid a $1.24 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, February 18th. This represents a $4.96 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.04%. Johnson & Johnson's dividend payout ratio is currently 74.59%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms have recently weighed in on JNJ. Argus upgraded Johnson & Johnson to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Friday, January 24th. Guggenheim lifted their price target on shares of Johnson & Johnson from $162.00 to $166.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. Citigroup decreased their price objective on shares of Johnson & Johnson from $185.00 to $175.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, December 11th. Wells Fargo & Company cut their target price on Johnson & Johnson from $166.00 to $152.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, January 23rd. Finally, Barclays raised their price target on Johnson & Johnson from $159.00 to $166.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 28th. Nine research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have issued a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Johnson & Johnson has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $170.67.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, EVP Timothy Schmid sold 403 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred 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 completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 15,098 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,357,552.70. This represents a 2.60 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, Director Mark A. Weinberger bought 1,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, December 12th. The shares were acquired at an average price of $147.22 per share, for a total transaction of $147,220.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 1,000 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $147,220. The trade was a ∞ increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. 0.16% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

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.