Wealth Effects LLC Decreases Holdings in Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ)

Wealth Effects LLC trimmed its position in shares of Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ) by 13.1% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 7,298 shares of the company’s stock after selling 1,103 shares during the period. Wealth Effects LLC’s holdings in Johnson & Johnson were worth $1,210,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Norges Bank purchased a new position in Johnson & Johnson in the 4th quarter worth approximately $4,390,037,000. Raymond James Financial Inc. purchased a new position in Johnson & Johnson in the 4th quarter worth approximately $1,339,878,000. GAMMA Investing LLC increased its stake in Johnson & Johnson by 24,450.4% in the 1st quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 7,215,367 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,196,596,000 after purchasing an additional 7,185,977 shares during the period. Janus Henderson Group PLC increased its stake in Johnson & Johnson by 134.5% in the 4th quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC now owns 7,948,508 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,149,536,000 after purchasing an additional 4,559,147 shares during the period. Finally, Northern Trust Corp increased its stake in Johnson & Johnson by 12.3% in the 4th quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 30,813,175 shares of the company’s stock worth $4,456,201,000 after purchasing an additional 3,363,235 shares during the period. 69.55% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Johnson & Johnson Price Performance

Shares of JNJ stock opened at $152.44 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.03, a current ratio of 1.26 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.49. The business’s fifty day moving average is $153.75 and its 200 day moving average is $153.71. Johnson & Johnson has a twelve month low of $140.68 and a twelve month high of $169.99. The stock has a market cap of $366.78 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.96, a PEG ratio of 2.30 and a beta of 0.42.

Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, April 15th. The company reported $2.77 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.59 by $0.18. Johnson & Johnson had a return on equity of 33.46% and a net margin of 24.42%. The business had revenue of $21.89 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $21.65 billion. Research analysts expect that Johnson & Johnson will post 10.58 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Johnson & Johnson Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, June 10th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, May 27th were issued a $1.30 dividend. This represents a $5.20 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.41%. This is an increase from Johnson & Johnson’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.24. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, May 27th. Johnson & Johnson’s payout ratio is 57.84%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

JNJ has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. Barclays decreased their price target on Johnson & Johnson from $166.00 to $165.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, April 17th. Guggenheim reaffirmed a “neutral” rating on shares of Johnson & Johnson in a research note on Wednesday, April 2nd. Wall Street Zen raised Johnson & Johnson from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Saturday, June 21st. Leerink Partners cut Johnson & Johnson from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating and reduced their target price for the company from $169.00 to $153.00 in a research note on Tuesday, May 13th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group raised Johnson & Johnson from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and boosted their target price for the company from $157.00 to $172.00 in a research note on Wednesday, April 9th. Eleven investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seven have assigned a buy rating and three have given a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $170.88.

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.