AQR Capital Management LLC Increases Stock Position in Johnson & Johnson $JNJ

Key Points

• AQR Capital Management LLC increased its holdings in Johnson & Johnson by 51.6%, acquiring an additional 1,793,075 shares during the first quarter, bringing its total ownership to approximately 5.27 million shares.
• Johnson & Johnson reported $2.77 earnings per share for the last quarter, exceeding estimates and reflecting a 5.8% year-over-year revenue growth.
• The company announced a quarterly dividend of $1.30 per share, which equates to an annualized yield of 2.9%, with the ex-dividend date set for August 26th.

AQR Capital Management LLC increased its stake in shares of Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ - Free Report) by 51.6% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 5,265,710 shares of the company's stock after purchasing an additional 1,793,075 shares during the quarter. Johnson & Johnson makes up about 0.9% of AQR Capital Management LLC's portfolio, making the stock its 6th largest holding. AQR Capital Management LLC owned about 0.22% of Johnson & Johnson worth $873,265,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Highline Wealth Partners LLC grew its holdings in shares of 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 purchasing an additional 86 shares during the last quarter. Stone House Investment Management LLC acquired a new stake in Johnson & Johnson during the 1st quarter worth approximately $47,000. 1248 Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Johnson & Johnson during the first quarter valued at $48,000. von Borstel & Associates Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Johnson & Johnson in the first quarter worth $49,000. Finally, Capital A Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in Johnson & Johnson in the fourth quarter valued at $50,000. 69.55% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts have commented on JNJ shares. Leerink Partnrs lowered Johnson & Johnson from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Tuesday, May 13th. Erste Group Bank upgraded shares of Johnson & Johnson from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 23rd. Bank of America increased their price target on Johnson & Johnson from $161.00 to $175.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Thursday, July 17th. Citigroup increased their target price on shares of Johnson & Johnson from $185.00 to $200.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, August 21st. Finally, Leerink Partners lowered shares of Johnson & Johnson from an "outperform" rating to a "market perform" rating and dropped their price objective for the company from $169.00 to $153.00 in a report on Tuesday, May 13th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nine have given a Buy rating and nine have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $176.29.

Insider Activity at Johnson & Johnson

In other news, EVP Jennifer L. Taubert sold 56,471 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, September 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $177.81, for a total value of $10,041,108.51. Following the transaction, the executive vice president owned 178,013 shares in the company, valued at $31,652,491.53. The trade was a 24.08% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. 0.16% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Johnson & Johnson Stock Down 0.3%

Shares of NYSE:JNJ traded down $0.57 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $178.20. 9,733,095 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 7,556,979. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $168.06 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $160.60. Johnson & Johnson has a 12-month low of $140.68 and a 12-month high of $181.16. The stock has a market cap of $429.15 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.88, a P/E/G ratio of 2.28 and a beta of 0.40. The company has a current ratio of 1.01, a quick ratio of 0.76 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.50.

Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 16th. The company reported $2.77 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $2.68 by $0.09. The business had revenue of $23.74 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $22.85 billion. Johnson & Johnson had a return on equity of 32.49% and a net margin of 25.00%.Johnson & Johnson's quarterly revenue was up 5.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $2.82 EPS. Johnson & Johnson has set its FY 2025 guidance at 10.800-10.900 EPS. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Johnson & Johnson will post 10.58 earnings per share for the current year.

Johnson & Johnson Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed 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. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, August 26th. This represents a $5.20 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.9%. Johnson & Johnson's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 55.61%.

Johnson & Johnson Company 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.