Searle & CO. Boosts Stake in Johnson & Johnson $JNJ

Searle & CO. increased its stake in shares of Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ) by 1.8% during the second quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 39,220 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 675 shares during the quarter. Johnson & Johnson comprises approximately 1.7% of Searle & CO.’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 15th biggest holding. Searle & CO.’s holdings in Johnson & Johnson were worth $5,991,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its stake in shares of Johnson & Johnson by 0.5% in the first quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 233,962,679 shares of the company’s stock worth $38,800,371,000 after purchasing an additional 1,170,120 shares during the last quarter. Northern Trust Corp increased its holdings in Johnson & Johnson by 0.4% in the 1st quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 30,943,820 shares of the company’s stock worth $5,131,723,000 after buying an additional 130,645 shares during the period. Bank of New York Mellon Corp raised its position in Johnson & Johnson by 2.7% during the 2nd quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 23,802,503 shares of the company’s stock worth $3,635,832,000 after buying an additional 620,039 shares during the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Johnson & Johnson by 3.9% in the 1st quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 18,899,263 shares of the company’s stock valued at $3,133,602,000 after acquiring an additional 712,181 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA boosted its holdings in shares of Johnson & Johnson by 2.5% in the 1st quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 18,282,410 shares of the company’s stock valued at $3,031,955,000 after acquiring an additional 448,666 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 69.55% of the company’s stock.

Johnson & Johnson Stock Performance

NYSE:JNJ opened at $186.50 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.50, a quick ratio of 0.80 and a current ratio of 1.07. The stock has a market capitalization of $449.34 billion, a PE ratio of 18.00, a P/E/G ratio of 2.19 and a beta of 0.38. Johnson & Johnson has a fifty-two week low of $140.68 and a fifty-two week high of $194.48. The company has a fifty day moving average of $184.25 and a two-hundred day moving average of $168.70.

Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, August 30th. The company reported $2.26 EPS for the quarter. Johnson & Johnson had a net margin of 27.26% and a return on equity of 32.73%. The business had revenue of $24.02 billion during the quarter. As a group, research analysts forecast that Johnson & Johnson will post 10.58 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Johnson & Johnson Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 9th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, November 25th will be issued a $1.30 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, November 25th. This represents a $5.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.8%. Johnson & Johnson’s dividend payout ratio is presently 50.19%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, EVP Jennifer L. Taubert sold 56,471 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, September 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $177.81, for a total value of $10,041,108.51. Following the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 178,013 shares in the company, valued at approximately $31,652,491.53. This represents a 24.08% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Insiders own 0.16% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

JNJ has been the subject of a number of research reports. The Goldman Sachs Group boosted their target price on shares of Johnson & Johnson from $186.00 to $212.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 9th. HSBC raised their target price on Johnson & Johnson from $210.00 to $215.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, October 16th. Daiwa America raised Johnson & Johnson from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Monday, October 20th. Raymond James Financial upped their price objective on Johnson & Johnson from $174.00 to $209.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 15th. Finally, UBS Group boosted their target price on shares of Johnson & Johnson from $190.00 to $214.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 14th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fourteen have given a Buy rating and nine have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Johnson & Johnson presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $199.05.

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.