Blue Trust Inc. Grows Stock Position in Johnson & Johnson $JNJ

Blue Trust Inc. raised its position in Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ) by 1.6% during the second quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm owned 66,941 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 1,066 shares during the period. Blue Trust Inc.’s holdings in Johnson & Johnson were worth $10,225,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Apexium Financial LP increased its stake in shares of Johnson & Johnson by 10.7% during the 1st quarter. Apexium Financial LP now owns 23,989 shares of the company’s stock valued at $3,978,000 after acquiring an additional 2,310 shares during the last quarter. Avanza Fonder AB grew its position in Johnson & Johnson by 2.9% in the second quarter. Avanza Fonder AB now owns 234,647 shares of the company’s stock valued at $35,842,000 after acquiring an additional 6,566 shares in the last quarter. Joel Isaacson & Co. LLC grew its position in shares of Johnson & Johnson by 3.5% during the first quarter. Joel Isaacson & Co. LLC now owns 74,132 shares of the company’s stock worth $12,294,000 after buying an additional 2,526 shares in the last quarter. Tokio Marine Asset Management Co. Ltd. grew its position in shares of Johnson & Johnson by 7.0% during the first quarter. Tokio Marine Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 73,350 shares of the company’s stock worth $12,164,000 after buying an additional 4,816 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Absher Wealth Management LLC lifted its stake in Johnson & Johnson by 1.2% during the first quarter. Absher Wealth Management LLC now owns 215,584 shares of the company’s stock worth $35,752,000 after purchasing an additional 2,469 shares during the last quarter. 69.55% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Johnson & Johnson Price Performance

Shares of Johnson & Johnson stock opened at $190.66 on Monday. The company has a current ratio of 1.01, a quick ratio of 0.76 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.50. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $178.48 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $163.78. Johnson & Johnson has a 52 week low of $140.68 and a 52 week high of $192.10. The stock has a market cap of $459.16 billion, a PE ratio of 20.39, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.40 and a beta of 0.40.

Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, August 30th. The company reported $2.26 EPS for the quarter. Johnson & Johnson had a net margin of 25.00% and a return on equity of 32.49%. The firm had revenue of $24.02 billion for the quarter. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Johnson & Johnson will post 10.58 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Johnson & Johnson Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, September 9th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, August 26th were given a $1.30 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, August 26th. This represents a $5.20 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.7%. Johnson & Johnson’s payout ratio is 55.61%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages recently issued reports on JNJ. Wells Fargo & Company set a $212.00 price objective on Johnson & Johnson and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, October 3rd. The Goldman Sachs Group raised their target price on Johnson & Johnson from $186.00 to $212.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday. Guggenheim upgraded Johnson & Johnson from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and raised their target price for the company from $167.00 to $206.00 in a research note on Tuesday, September 23rd. Royal Bank Of Canada reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $209.00 target price on shares of Johnson & Johnson in a research note on Friday. Finally, Wall Street Zen raised Johnson & Johnson from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Saturday, September 13th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twelve have assigned a Buy rating and eight have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $192.94.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, EVP Jennifer L. Taubert sold 56,471 shares of Johnson & Johnson stock in a transaction dated Thursday, September 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $177.81, for a total value of $10,041,108.51. Following the transaction, the executive vice president owned 178,013 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $31,652,491.53. This trade represents a 24.08% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Company insiders own 0.16% of the company’s stock.

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.