Asset Dedication LLC Purchases 1,886 Shares of Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ)

Asset Dedication LLC lifted its position in shares of Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ - Free Report) by 14.1% during the first quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 15,273 shares of the company's stock after purchasing an additional 1,886 shares during the period. Asset Dedication LLC's holdings in Johnson & Johnson were worth $2,533,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. MRP Capital Investments LLC boosted its position in shares of Johnson & Johnson by 4.1% during the 4th quarter. MRP Capital Investments LLC now owns 1,640 shares of the company's stock worth $237,000 after acquiring an additional 65 shares in the last quarter. Syverson Strege & Co lifted its stake in Johnson & Johnson by 4.9% during the fourth quarter. Syverson Strege & Co now owns 1,394 shares of the company's stock worth $202,000 after purchasing an additional 65 shares during the last quarter. MBA Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in Johnson & Johnson by 1.2% in the first quarter. MBA Advisors LLC now owns 5,553 shares of the company's stock valued at $921,000 after purchasing an additional 68 shares in the last quarter. Sovereign Financial Group Inc. raised its holdings in Johnson & Johnson by 1.8% during the first quarter. Sovereign Financial Group Inc. now owns 3,928 shares of the company's stock worth $651,000 after purchasing an additional 69 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Nabity Jensen Investment Management Inc lifted its position in shares of Johnson & Johnson by 1.5% during the 1st quarter. Nabity Jensen Investment Management Inc now owns 4,624 shares of the company's stock worth $767,000 after buying an additional 69 shares during the last quarter. 69.55% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Johnson & Johnson Stock Down 0.5%

Shares of NYSE:JNJ opened at $156.87 on Monday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.03, a current ratio of 1.26 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.49. The firm's 50-day simple moving average is $153.75 and its 200-day simple moving average is $154.55. Johnson & Johnson has a fifty-two week low of $140.68 and a fifty-two week high of $169.99. The company has a market cap of $377.44 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.45, a PEG ratio of 2.14 and a beta of 0.41.

Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 15th. The company reported $2.77 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $2.59 by $0.18. Johnson & Johnson had a net margin of 24.42% and a return on equity of 33.46%. The business had revenue of $21.89 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $21.65 billion. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Johnson & Johnson will post 10.58 earnings per share for the current year.

Johnson & Johnson Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, June 10th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, May 27th were paid a dividend of $1.30 per share. This represents a $5.20 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.31%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, May 27th. This is an increase from Johnson & Johnson's previous quarterly dividend of $1.24. Johnson & Johnson's payout ratio is 57.84%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts recently commented on the stock. Bank of America dropped their target price on shares of Johnson & Johnson from $171.00 to $159.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, April 10th. Leerink Partners lowered Johnson & Johnson from an "outperform" rating to a "market perform" rating and dropped their price objective for the stock from $169.00 to $153.00 in a report on Tuesday, May 13th. Royal Bank Of Canada reissued an "outperform" rating and issued a $181.00 target price on shares of Johnson & Johnson in a report on Thursday, June 5th. The Goldman Sachs Group raised Johnson & Johnson from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and upped their target price for the company from $157.00 to $172.00 in a research report on Wednesday, April 9th. Finally, Barclays cut their price target on Johnson & Johnson from $166.00 to $165.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, April 17th. Eleven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seven have issued a buy rating and three have assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $171.00.

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.

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