Johnson & Johnson $JNJ Shares Sold by Meridian Financial LLC

Meridian Financial LLC reduced its position in Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ) by 5.6% in the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 2,616 shares of the company’s stock after selling 154 shares during the quarter. Meridian Financial LLC’s holdings in Johnson & Johnson were worth $400,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the business. Highline Wealth Partners LLC grew its stake in shares of Johnson & Johnson by 51.8% in the first quarter. Highline Wealth Partners LLC now owns 252 shares of the company’s stock worth $42,000 after acquiring an additional 86 shares in the last quarter. Stone House Investment Management LLC purchased a new position in Johnson & Johnson in the first quarter valued at $47,000. 1248 Management LLC acquired a new position in Johnson & Johnson during the 1st quarter worth $48,000. von Borstel & Associates Inc. purchased a new stake in Johnson & Johnson during the 1st quarter worth about $49,000. Finally, Harvest Fund Management Co. Ltd acquired a new stake in Johnson & Johnson in the 1st quarter valued at about $52,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 69.55% of the company’s stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Johnson & Johnson news, EVP Jennifer L. Taubert sold 56,471 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, September 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $177.81, for a total transaction of $10,041,108.51. Following the transaction, the executive vice president directly 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 is available at the SEC website. 0.16% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Johnson & Johnson Stock Performance

Shares of JNJ stock opened at $177.71 on Friday. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $174.09 and its two-hundred day moving average is $161.97. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.50, a quick ratio of 0.76 and a current ratio of 1.01. Johnson & Johnson has a 1 year low of $140.68 and a 1 year high of $181.16. The firm has a market cap of $427.99 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.01, a PEG ratio of 2.25 and a beta of 0.40.

Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, July 16th. The company reported $2.77 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.68 by $0.09. The firm had revenue of $23.74 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $22.85 billion. Johnson & Johnson had a return on equity of 32.49% and a net margin of 25.00%.The business’s revenue was up 5.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $2.82 EPS. Johnson & Johnson has set its FY 2025 guidance at 10.800-10.900 EPS. Analysts predict that Johnson & Johnson will post 10.58 earnings per share for the current year.

Johnson & Johnson Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, September 9th. Investors 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 2.9%. Johnson & Johnson’s dividend payout ratio is 55.61%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts have recently commented on JNJ shares. The Goldman Sachs Group boosted their price objective on Johnson & Johnson from $185.00 to $186.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, September 19th. Morgan Stanley boosted their price target on shares of Johnson & Johnson from $171.00 to $176.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Thursday, July 17th. Barclays raised their price objective on shares of Johnson & Johnson from $165.00 to $176.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Thursday, July 17th. Piper Sandler reiterated an “overweight” rating on shares of Johnson & Johnson in a research note on Thursday, July 17th. Finally, Erste Group Bank raised Johnson & Johnson from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 23rd. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, ten have given a Buy rating and nine have issued a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $181.40.

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.