Johnson & Johnson $JNJ Shares Sold by Jefferies Financial Group Inc.

Jefferies Financial Group Inc. trimmed its stake in shares of Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ) by 47.9% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 35,424 shares of the company’s stock after selling 32,586 shares during the quarter. Jefferies Financial Group Inc.’s holdings in Johnson & Johnson were worth $9,378,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in JNJ. Jupiter Topco LLC bought a new stake in shares of Johnson & Johnson during the second quarter worth $1,967,399,000. Corient Private Wealth LP increased its holdings in shares of Johnson & Johnson by 127.3% during the second quarter. Corient Private Wealth LP now owns 6,060,922 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,539,292,000 after buying an additional 3,393,981 shares in the last quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP lifted its stake in shares of Johnson & Johnson by 12.5% in the 2nd quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 22,588,696 shares of the company’s stock valued at $5,736,851,000 after acquiring an additional 2,513,321 shares during the last quarter. Amundi lifted its stake in shares of Johnson & Johnson by 17.5% in the 1st quarter. Amundi now owns 13,406,820 shares of the company’s stock valued at $3,277,163,000 after acquiring an additional 2,001,139 shares during the last quarter. Finally, SEB Asset Management AB bought a new position in shares of Johnson & Johnson in the 1st quarter valued at $314,468,000. Institutional investors own 69.55% of the company’s stock.

Key Johnson & Johnson News

Investors following JNJ have been watching these news items:

• Positive Sentiment: Oncology sales rose 16.8% to $22 billion in the first nine months of 2026, supported by established medicines and new launches. Another article points to recent launches and business changes as potential support for double-digit growth by 2030, though that outlook is prospective. Oncology sales article
• Neutral Sentiment: J&J shares have risen substantially in recent years, prompting questions about whether expected cash flows justify the valuation; this could limit further gains if expectations are already reflected in the stock. Separately, a State Street health-care ETF sold J&J shares while reducing all of its holdings, which does not appear to be a company-specific signal. Valuation article
• Negative Sentiment: A Massachusetts jury awarded $3.3 million, including interest, to a family in a mesothelioma case tied to J&J talc-based baby powder. The award adds to the company’s ongoing talc litigation exposure. Verdict announcement

Johnson & Johnson Stock Performance

Shares of Johnson & Johnson stock opened at $280.52 on Thursday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.74, a current ratio of 1.02 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.44. Johnson & Johnson has a twelve month low of $193.07 and a twelve month high of $283.25. The stock has a market cap of $675.29 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 42.50, a P/E/G ratio of 2.78 and a beta of 0.22. The company’s fifty day moving average is $266.67 and its 200 day moving average is $249.23.

Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, October 13th. The company reported $2.59 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.53 by $0.06. Johnson & Johnson had a return on equity of 31.64% and a net margin of 16.20%. The business had revenue of $25.40 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $25.38 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $2.80 earnings per share. Johnson & Johnson’s quarterly revenue was up 5.9% on a year-over-year basis. Johnson & Johnson has set its FY 2026 guidance at 11.050-11.150 EPS. Sell-side analysts forecast that Johnson & Johnson will post 11.12 EPS for the current year.

Johnson & Johnson Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 8th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, November 24th will be given a dividend of $1.34 per share. This represents a $5.36 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.9%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, November 24th. Johnson & Johnson’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 81.21%.

Insider Transactions at Johnson & Johnson

In related news, EVP Jennifer L. Taubert sold 15,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, August 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $263.36, for a total value of $3,950,400.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 194,451 shares in the company, valued at $51,210,615.36. This represents a 7.16% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, EVP Timothy Schmid sold 33,597 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, September 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $274.74, for a total transaction of $9,230,439.78. Following the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 25,447 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $6,991,308.78. This represents a 56.90% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. 0.16% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages recently weighed in on JNJ. Leerink Partners reduced their price objective on Johnson & Johnson from $276.00 to $272.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, October 14th. Johnson Rice cut Johnson & Johnson from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 21st. Royal Bank Of Canada dropped their target price on Johnson & Johnson from $290.00 to $280.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, October 14th. Sanford C. Bernstein set a $270.00 price target on Johnson & Johnson in a research note on Thursday, October 15th. Finally, Citigroup boosted their price target on Johnson & Johnson from $298.00 to $303.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, October 5th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seventeen have given a Buy rating and eight have assigned a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $275.92.

About Johnson & Johnson

Johnson & Johnson is a global healthcare company that develops and sells prescription medicines and medical technologies. Its business is organized around two segments: Innovative Medicine and MedTech. Innovative Medicine develops treatments in areas including oncology, immunology, neuroscience, cardiovascular and metabolic disease, and pulmonary hypertension. MedTech provides products and technologies for fields such as surgery, orthopedics, and vision care. Founded in 1886, Johnson & Johnson serves patients and healthcare professionals in markets around the world.