Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ) Shares Sold by AEGON ASSET MANAGEMENT UK Plc

AEGON ASSET MANAGEMENT UK Plc decreased its position in Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ - Free Report) by 4.0% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 614,837 shares of the company's stock after selling 25,864 shares during the quarter. Johnson & Johnson accounts for approximately 1.5% of AEGON ASSET MANAGEMENT UK Plc's holdings, making the stock its 14th largest holding. AEGON ASSET MANAGEMENT UK Plc's holdings in Johnson & Johnson were worth $101,888,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of JNJ. WealthTrak Capital Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Johnson & Johnson during the fourth quarter worth approximately $26,000. Mountain Hill Investment Partners Corp. bought a new stake in shares of Johnson & Johnson during the fourth quarter worth approximately $29,000. Bay Harbor Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Johnson & Johnson during the fourth quarter worth approximately $32,000. Conquis Financial LLC bought a new stake in shares of Johnson & Johnson during the 4th quarter valued at $33,000. Finally, Bernard Wealth Management Corp. bought a new stake in shares of Johnson & Johnson during the 4th quarter valued at $36,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 69.55% of the company's stock.

Johnson & Johnson Stock Up 0.2%

Shares of JNJ stock traded up $0.28 during trading on Thursday, reaching $153.50. The company's stock had a trading volume of 5,277,704 shares, compared to its average volume of 7,929,000. The company has a quick ratio of 0.86, a current ratio of 1.11 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.43. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $153.81 and a 200-day moving average price of $153.67. Johnson & Johnson has a one year low of $140.68 and a one year high of $169.99. The company has a market cap of $369.32 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 23.08, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.56 and a beta of 0.42.

Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 15th. The company reported $2.77 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.59 by $0.18. The firm had revenue of $21.89 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $21.65 billion. Johnson & Johnson had a net margin of 18.20% and a return on equity of 34.24%. Analysts anticipate that Johnson & Johnson will post 10.58 earnings per share for the current year.

Johnson & Johnson Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, June 10th. Investors of record on Tuesday, May 27th will be paid a dividend of $1.30 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, May 27th. This is an increase from Johnson & Johnson's previous quarterly dividend of $1.24. This represents a $5.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.39%. Johnson & Johnson's payout ratio is 57.84%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several brokerages recently weighed in on JNJ. Sanford C. Bernstein restated a "market perform" rating on shares of Johnson & Johnson in a research report on Wednesday, April 16th. The Goldman Sachs Group raised Johnson & Johnson from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and raised their target price for the stock from $157.00 to $172.00 in a research note on Wednesday, April 9th. Raymond James reduced their price objective on Johnson & Johnson from $165.00 to $162.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research note on Monday, April 14th. Benchmark raised Johnson & Johnson to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, April 24th. Finally, Morgan Stanley lifted their target price on Johnson & Johnson from $164.00 to $169.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 16th. Eleven analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have issued a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $170.88.

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.