Empire Life Investments Inc. Reduces Stock Holdings in Johnson & Johnson $JNJ

Key Points

• Empire Life Investments cut its Johnson & Johnson stake by 8.9% in the fourth quarter, selling 15,580 shares and leaving it with 159,232 shares worth about $32.95 million.
• Johnson & Johnson reported better-than-expected quarterly results, with EPS of $2.70 and revenue of $24.06 billion, while also guiding FY 2026 EPS to 11.45-11.65.
• The company raised its quarterly dividend to $1.34 per share, and analysts remain broadly positive with a consensus rating of Moderate Buy and an average target price of $252.48.

Empire Life Investments Inc. trimmed its position in shares of Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ - Free Report) by 8.9% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 159,232 shares of the company's stock after selling 15,580 shares during the period. Johnson & Johnson accounts for approximately 1.9% of Empire Life Investments Inc.'s portfolio, making the stock its 14th largest holding. Empire Life Investments Inc.'s holdings in Johnson & Johnson were worth $32,953,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors have also bought and sold shares of JNJ. AustralianSuper Pty Ltd raised its position in shares of Johnson & Johnson by 632.0% in the third quarter. AustralianSuper Pty Ltd now owns 89,183 shares of the company's stock valued at $16,536,000 after purchasing an additional 77,000 shares during the period. J.W. Cole Advisors Inc. boosted its holdings in Johnson & Johnson by 2.2% in the 3rd quarter. J.W. Cole Advisors Inc. now owns 130,934 shares of the company's stock worth $24,278,000 after buying an additional 2,769 shares during the period. Guinness Asset Management LTD grew its stake in Johnson & Johnson by 0.4% in the 3rd quarter. Guinness Asset Management LTD now owns 1,383,195 shares of the company's stock valued at $251,216,000 after buying an additional 5,994 shares in the last quarter. Greenberg Financial Group bought a new stake in Johnson & Johnson during the 4th quarter valued at $954,000. Finally, National Pension Service lifted its position in shares of Johnson & Johnson by 3.2% during the third quarter. National Pension Service now owns 4,926,569 shares of the company's stock worth $913,484,000 after acquiring an additional 151,707 shares in the last quarter. 69.55% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts have recently weighed in on the company. Argus lifted their price target on Johnson & Johnson from $240.00 to $275.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, April 16th. Raymond James Financial raised their target price on Johnson & Johnson from $237.00 to $258.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 15th. Leerink Partners lifted their target price on Johnson & Johnson from $232.00 to $252.00 and gave the company a "market perform" rating in a report on Wednesday, April 15th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price target on Johnson & Johnson from $250.00 to $260.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 15th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group raised their price objective on shares of Johnson & Johnson from $265.00 to $275.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 15th. Eighteen investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and nine have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $252.48.

Johnson & Johnson Price Performance

Shares of NYSE JNJ opened at $224.44 on Wednesday. The stock's 50-day simple moving average is $236.18 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $221.21. Johnson & Johnson has a twelve month low of $146.12 and a twelve month high of $251.71. The firm has a market capitalization of $540.28 billion, a P/E ratio of 25.95, a P/E/G ratio of 2.17 and a beta of 0.27. The company has a quick ratio of 0.77, a current ratio of 1.03 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.46.

Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, April 14th. The company reported $2.70 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.68 by $0.02. The company had revenue of $24.06 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $23.60 billion. Johnson & Johnson had a return on equity of 32.60% and a net margin of 21.83%.Johnson & Johnson's revenue was up 9.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $2.77 earnings per share. Johnson & Johnson has set its FY 2026 guidance at 11.450-11.650 EPS. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Johnson & Johnson will post 11.57 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Johnson & Johnson Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, June 9th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, May 26th will be issued a $1.34 dividend. This represents a $5.36 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.4%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, May 26th. This is a positive change from Johnson & Johnson's previous quarterly dividend of $1.30. Johnson & Johnson's payout ratio is currently 60.12%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Johnson & Johnson

In other news, EVP Vanessa Broadhurst sold 6,197 shares of Johnson & Johnson stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $243.39, for a total transaction of $1,508,287.83. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 23,003 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $5,598,700.17. The trade was a 21.22% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, EVP Timothy Schmid sold 1,322 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Friday, February 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $245.66, for a total transaction of $324,762.52. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president owned 25,447 shares of the company's stock, valued at $6,251,310.02. This trade represents a 4.94% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 30,142 shares of company stock worth $7,360,528. Corporate insiders own 0.16% of the company's stock.

Johnson & Johnson News Roundup

Here are the key news stories impacting Johnson & Johnson this week:

• Positive Sentiment: J&J says Tremfya and newly approved Icotyde will anchor its post-Stelara immunology strategy, helping support growth as Stelara faces biosimilar competition.
• Positive Sentiment: The company launched the Shockwave C2 Aero Coronary IVL catheter globally, reinforcing momentum in its medtech division and expanding its cardiovascular portfolio.
• Positive Sentiment: J&J continues to highlight strong Phase 3 TREMFYA data and new neuropsychiatry portfolio results, which could improve confidence in its pipeline and future launches.
• Neutral Sentiment: J&J will participate in the Goldman Sachs Global Healthcare Conference, which may offer investors more color on strategy but is not, by itself, a major fundamental catalyst.
• Neutral Sentiment: Broader market weakness, especially pressure on the Nasdaq from chip stocks, may be influencing overall sentiment, but it is not specific to J&J’s business.

Johnson & Johnson Company Profile

Johnson & Johnson is a multinational healthcare company headquartered in New Brunswick, New Jersey, that develops, manufactures and markets a broad range of products across pharmaceuticals, medical devices and previously consumer health. Founded in 1886 by the Johnson family, the company has grown into a global healthcare organization with operations and sales in many countries around the world.

The company's pharmaceuticals business, organized largely under its Janssen research and development organization, focuses on prescription medicines across therapeutic areas such as immunology, infectious disease, oncology and neuroscience.

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