American Century Companies Inc. Decreases Holdings in Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ)

Key Points

• American Century Companies Inc. reduced its holdings in Johnson & Johnson by 11.9%, now owning approximately 6.6 million shares valued at around $1.1 billion.
• Johnson & Johnson announced a quarterly dividend of $1.30 per share, which will be paid on September 9th, representing an annualized yield of 3.0%.
• Analysts have recently upped their target prices for Johnson & Johnson, with Barclays setting a target at $176.00 and UBS Group raising it to $190.00, reflecting confidence in the stock's growth potential.

American Century Companies Inc. trimmed its holdings in shares of Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ - Free Report) by 11.9% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 6,623,876 shares of the company's stock after selling 894,425 shares during the quarter. Johnson & Johnson accounts for approximately 0.7% of American Century Companies Inc.'s holdings, making the stock its 14th biggest holding. American Century Companies Inc. owned approximately 0.28% of Johnson & Johnson worth $1,098,504,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in the business. Highline Wealth Partners LLC boosted its position in Johnson & Johnson by 51.8% in the 1st quarter. Highline Wealth Partners LLC now owns 252 shares of the company's stock valued at $42,000 after buying an additional 86 shares during the period. Stone House Investment Management LLC purchased a new stake in Johnson & Johnson in the 1st quarter valued at about $47,000. von Borstel & Associates Inc. purchased a new stake in Johnson & Johnson in the 1st quarter valued at about $49,000. Harvest Fund Management Co. Ltd purchased a new stake in Johnson & Johnson in the 1st quarter valued at about $52,000. Finally, Capital A Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in Johnson & Johnson in the 4th quarter valued at about $50,000. 69.55% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Johnson & Johnson Stock Up 0.3%

Shares of NYSE JNJ opened at $174.96 on Friday. Johnson & Johnson has a 12-month low of $140.68 and a 12-month high of $175.72. The stock has a market cap of $421.37 billion, a PE ratio of 18.71, a P/E/G ratio of 2.22 and a beta of 0.41. 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 company has a 50-day moving average of $160.85 and a 200 day moving average of $158.16.

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

Johnson & Johnson Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 9th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, August 26th will be paid a dividend of $1.30 per share. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, August 26th. This represents a $5.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.0%. Johnson & Johnson's dividend payout ratio is 55.61%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts have commented on the stock. Barclays raised their target price on shares of Johnson & Johnson from $165.00 to $176.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Thursday, July 17th. Guggenheim reissued a "neutral" rating and set a $167.00 target price (up previously from $164.00) on shares of Johnson & Johnson in a research report on Thursday, July 17th. Leerink Partnrs lowered shares of Johnson & Johnson from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Tuesday, May 13th. Morgan Stanley increased their price target on shares of Johnson & Johnson from $171.00 to $176.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Thursday, July 17th. Finally, UBS Group increased their price target on shares of Johnson & Johnson from $180.00 to $190.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, July 17th. Nine investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, ten have issued a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Johnson & Johnson presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $174.50.

Johnson & Johnson Profile

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.

Want to see what other hedge funds are holding JNJ? Visit HoldingsChannel.com to get the latest 13F filings and insider trades for Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ - Free Report).

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest and most accurate reporting. This story was reviewed by MarketBeat's editorial team prior to publication. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.