Goldman Sachs Group Inc. Raises Stock Position in Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ)

Key Points

• Goldman Sachs Group Inc. increased its stake in Johnson & Johnson by 10.5%, owning 12,429,603 shares worth approximately $2.06 billion by the end of the recent quarter.
• Johnson & Johnson reported earnings of $2.77 per share for the last quarter, exceeding expectations, with a revenue of $23.74 billion, reflecting a 5.8% year-over-year increase.
• The company announced a quarterly dividend of $1.30 per share, representing a yield of 3.0% and a payout ratio of 55.61%.

Goldman Sachs Group Inc. raised its stake in shares of Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ - Free Report) by 10.5% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 12,429,603 shares of the company's stock after purchasing an additional 1,178,116 shares during the quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. owned 0.52% of Johnson & Johnson worth $2,061,325,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in JNJ. Bernard Wealth Management Corp. bought a new stake in shares of Johnson & Johnson in the 4th quarter valued at about $36,000. Highline Wealth Partners LLC increased its position in shares of Johnson & Johnson by 51.8% in the first quarter. Highline Wealth Partners LLC now owns 252 shares of the company's stock valued at $42,000 after acquiring an additional 86 shares during the period. von Borstel & Associates Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Johnson & Johnson during the first quarter worth about $49,000. Capital A Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in Johnson & Johnson during the 4th quarter valued at about $50,000. Finally, Harvest Fund Management Co. Ltd bought a new position in Johnson & Johnson in the 1st quarter worth $52,000. Institutional investors own 69.55% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts recently issued reports on JNJ shares. Benchmark raised shares of Johnson & Johnson to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, April 24th. Raymond James Financial decreased their price objective on shares of Johnson & Johnson from $165.00 to $162.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a report on Monday, April 14th. Leerink Partnrs downgraded Johnson & Johnson from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Tuesday, May 13th. The Goldman Sachs Group raised shares of Johnson & Johnson from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and lifted their price target for the company from $157.00 to $172.00 in a report on Wednesday, April 9th. Finally, Morgan Stanley raised their price objective on shares of Johnson & Johnson from $171.00 to $176.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Thursday, July 17th. Nine analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, ten have issued a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $174.50.

Johnson & Johnson Stock Up 0.5%

Shares of JNJ traded up $0.82 during mid-day trading on Thursday, hitting $171.41. 9,314,579 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 9,367,092. The business has a 50 day moving average of $158.89 and a 200 day moving average of $157.27. The company has a market capitalization of $412.81 billion, a PE ratio of 18.33, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.17 and a beta of 0.41. The company has a quick ratio of 0.76, a current ratio of 1.01 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.50. Johnson & Johnson has a 1-year low of $140.68 and a 1-year high of $172.18.

Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 16th. The company reported $2.77 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.68 by $0.09. Johnson & Johnson had a return on equity of 32.49% and a net margin of 25.00%. The business had revenue of $23.74 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $22.85 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $2.82 EPS. The company's quarterly revenue was up 5.8% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts anticipate that Johnson & Johnson will post 10.58 EPS 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 given a $1.30 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, August 26th. This represents a $5.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.0%. Johnson & Johnson's dividend payout ratio 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.