Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ) Stock Position Lifted by Elefante Mark B

Key Points

• Elefante Mark B increased its stake in Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ) by 13.3%, owning 21,233 shares valued at $3.52 million, making it the firm's 17th largest position.
• Johnson & Johnson's stock recently traded at $168.29, with analysts projecting an average price target of $174.50 and a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy."
• The company declared a quarterly dividend of $1.30 per share, yielding 3.09% annually, with a payout ratio of 55.61%.

Elefante Mark B lifted its holdings in Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ - Free Report) by 13.3% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 21,233 shares of the company's stock after acquiring an additional 2,495 shares during the period. Johnson & Johnson makes up 2.8% of Elefante Mark B's portfolio, making the stock its 17th biggest position. Elefante Mark B's holdings in Johnson & Johnson were worth $3,521,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other large investors also recently made changes to their positions in the business. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its holdings in Johnson & Johnson by 2.8% during the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 57,667,920 shares of the company's stock valued at $8,321,881,000 after purchasing an additional 1,561,036 shares in the last quarter. Northern Trust Corp grew its holdings 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 purchasing an additional 3,363,235 shares in the last quarter. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in Johnson & Johnson during the 4th quarter valued at $4,390,037,000. Wellington Management Group LLP grew its holdings in Johnson & Johnson by 1.8% during the 4th quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 24,356,572 shares of the company's stock valued at $3,522,447,000 after purchasing an additional 431,205 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Bank of New York Mellon Corp grew its holdings in Johnson & Johnson by 26.4% during the 1st quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 23,182,464 shares of the company's stock valued at $3,844,580,000 after purchasing an additional 4,842,582 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 69.55% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts have weighed in on JNJ shares. Erste Group Bank raised shares of Johnson & Johnson from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, July 23rd. Leerink Partners lowered shares of Johnson & Johnson from an "outperform" rating to a "market perform" rating and decreased their price objective for the stock from $169.00 to $153.00 in a report on Tuesday, May 13th. UBS Group raised their price objective on shares of Johnson & Johnson from $180.00 to $190.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday, July 17th. Leerink Partnrs lowered shares of Johnson & Johnson from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Tuesday, May 13th. Finally, Guggenheim reissued a "neutral" rating and set a $167.00 price objective (up from $164.00) on shares of Johnson & Johnson in a report on Thursday, July 17th. Nine equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, ten have given a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Johnson & Johnson presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $174.50.

Johnson & Johnson Price Performance

Shares of JNJ traded down $1.22 during mid-day trading on Monday, hitting $167.08. The company's stock had a trading volume of 2,199,726 shares, compared to its average volume of 9,052,548. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $156.08 and a 200 day moving average price of $155.97. The stock has a market capitalization of $402.01 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.86, a PEG ratio of 2.14 and a beta of 0.41. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.50, a current ratio of 1.01 and a quick ratio of 0.76. Johnson & Johnson has a fifty-two week low of $140.68 and a fifty-two week high of $169.99.

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

Johnson & Johnson Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 9th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, August 26th will be given a $1.30 dividend. This represents a $5.20 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.11%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, August 26th. Johnson & Johnson's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 55.61%.

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.