Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ) Shares Bought by American Trust

American Trust raised its holdings in shares of Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ - Free Report) by 5.7% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 32,514 shares of the company's stock after acquiring an additional 1,764 shares during the quarter. American Trust's holdings in Johnson & Johnson were worth $4,702,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in JNJ. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in shares of Johnson & Johnson in the 4th quarter valued at about $4,390,037,000. Raymond James Financial Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Johnson & Johnson in the 4th quarter valued at about $1,339,878,000. Janus Henderson Group PLC boosted its position in shares of Johnson & Johnson by 134.5% in the 4th quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC now owns 7,948,508 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,149,536,000 after purchasing an additional 4,559,147 shares during the period. Northern Trust Corp raised its stake in Johnson & Johnson by 12.3% during the 4th quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 30,813,175 shares of the company's stock valued at $4,456,201,000 after acquiring an additional 3,363,235 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its position in Johnson & Johnson by 0.8% during the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 232,792,559 shares of the company's stock worth $33,666,460,000 after acquiring an additional 1,772,706 shares during the period. 69.55% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Johnson & Johnson Trading Up 0.2%

Johnson & Johnson stock traded up $0.31 during midday trading on Tuesday, reaching $153.25. The stock had a trading volume of 6,979,932 shares, compared to its average volume of 7,961,247. Johnson & Johnson has a twelve month low of $140.68 and a twelve month high of $169.99. The stock has a market capitalization of $368.73 billion, a PE ratio of 23.05, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.56 and a beta of 0.42. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.43, a quick ratio of 0.86 and a current ratio of 1.11. The stock's 50-day simple moving average is $155.05 and its 200 day simple moving average is $153.65.

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

Johnson & Johnson Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, June 10th. Investors of record on Tuesday, May 27th will be issued a $1.30 dividend. This is a positive change from Johnson & Johnson's previous quarterly dividend of $1.24. This represents a $5.20 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.39%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, May 27th. Johnson & Johnson's payout ratio is currently 57.84%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms have weighed in on JNJ. Royal Bank of Canada reaffirmed an "outperform" rating and set a $181.00 price objective on shares of Johnson & Johnson in a research report on Wednesday, April 16th. Guggenheim reaffirmed a "neutral" rating on shares of Johnson & Johnson in a research report on Wednesday, April 2nd. Bank of America decreased their price objective on Johnson & Johnson from $171.00 to $159.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, April 10th. Leerink Partnrs cut Johnson & Johnson from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Tuesday, May 13th. Finally, Morgan Stanley increased their target price on Johnson & Johnson from $164.00 to $169.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 16th. Eleven investment 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 stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $170.88.

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.