Banque Cantonale Vaudoise Invests $13.48 Million in Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ)

Key Points

• Banque Cantonale Vaudoise purchased 81,254 shares of Johnson & Johnson worth approximately $13.5 million, making it the company's 24th largest holding.
• Johnson & Johnson's stock has recently seen varied analyst ratings, with firms giving it an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a target price of $174.50.
• The company announced a quarterly dividend of $1.30 per share, which equates to an annual yield of 3.13%.

Banque Cantonale Vaudoise acquired a new position in shares of Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ - Free Report) in the first quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm acquired 81,254 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $13,476,000. Johnson & Johnson accounts for about 0.6% of Banque Cantonale Vaudoise's portfolio, making the stock its 24th biggest position.

A number of other hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Conquis Financial LLC purchased a new position in Johnson & Johnson during the fourth quarter worth $33,000. Bernard Wealth Management Corp. purchased a new position in Johnson & Johnson during the fourth quarter worth $36,000. Highline Wealth Partners LLC increased its position in Johnson & Johnson by 51.8% during the first quarter. Highline Wealth Partners LLC now owns 252 shares of the company's stock worth $42,000 after buying an additional 86 shares in the last quarter. von Borstel & Associates Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Johnson & Johnson during the first quarter worth $49,000. Finally, Capital A Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Johnson & Johnson during the fourth quarter worth $50,000. 69.55% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Johnson & Johnson Stock Up 1.6%

Johnson & Johnson stock traded up $2.71 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $167.45. The stock had a trading volume of 5,966,006 shares, compared to its average volume of 9,052,555. 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 stock has a market cap of $403.28 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.92, a P/E/G ratio of 2.13 and a beta of 0.41. Johnson & Johnson has a 12 month low of $140.68 and a 12 month high of $169.99. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $157.18 and a 200 day moving average price of $156.44.

Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 16th. The company reported $2.77 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.68 by $0.09. Johnson & Johnson had a return on equity of 32.49% and a net margin of 25.00%. The firm had revenue of $23.74 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $22.85 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $2.82 earnings per share. Johnson & Johnson's quarterly revenue was up 5.8% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts predict that Johnson & Johnson will post 10.58 EPS for the current year.

Johnson & Johnson Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 9th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, August 26th will be paid a $1.30 dividend. This represents a $5.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.1%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, August 26th. Johnson & Johnson's payout ratio is presently 55.61%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms have recently issued reports on JNJ. Guggenheim restated a "neutral" rating and set a $167.00 price objective (up previously from $164.00) on shares of Johnson & Johnson in a report on Thursday, July 17th. Benchmark upgraded Johnson & Johnson to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Thursday, April 24th. 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 report on Tuesday, May 13th. Barclays lifted their target price on Johnson & Johnson from $165.00 to $176.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a report on Thursday, July 17th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group upgraded Johnson & Johnson from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and lifted their target price for the company from $157.00 to $172.00 in a report on Wednesday, April 9th. Nine analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, ten have issued a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $174.50.

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.