Hudson Edge Investment Partners Inc. Reduces Position in Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ)

Hudson Edge Investment Partners Inc. reduced its position in Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ - Free Report) by 18.1% in the first quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 40,136 shares of the company's stock after selling 8,851 shares during the quarter. Johnson & Johnson comprises about 1.4% of Hudson Edge Investment Partners Inc.'s holdings, making the stock its 17th biggest holding. Hudson Edge Investment Partners Inc.'s holdings in Johnson & Johnson were worth $6,656,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of JNJ. WealthTrak Capital Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Johnson & Johnson during the 4th quarter valued at $26,000. Mountain Hill Investment Partners Corp. purchased a new stake in Johnson & Johnson during the fourth quarter valued at about $29,000. Conquis Financial LLC bought a new stake in Johnson & Johnson during the fourth quarter worth about $33,000. Bernard Wealth Management Corp. bought a new position in shares of Johnson & Johnson during the 4th quarter valued at about $36,000. Finally, Runnymede Capital Advisors Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Johnson & Johnson during the 4th quarter valued at about $38,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 69.55% of the company's stock.

Johnson & Johnson Trading Up 0.2%

Shares of NYSE JNJ traded up $0.34 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $155.90. 3,482,521 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 8,047,072. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.49, a quick ratio of 1.03 and a current ratio of 1.26. Johnson & Johnson has a 12-month low of $140.68 and a 12-month high of $169.99. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $153.68 and a 200 day moving average price of $154.03. The firm has a market cap of $375.11 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.34, a P/E/G ratio of 2.36 and a beta of 0.41.

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

Johnson & Johnson Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, June 10th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, May 27th were issued a dividend of $1.30 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, May 27th. This is an increase from Johnson & Johnson's previous quarterly dividend of $1.24. This represents a $5.20 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.34%. Johnson & Johnson's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 57.84%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts have issued reports on the company. Guggenheim reaffirmed a "neutral" rating on shares of Johnson & Johnson in a research note on Wednesday, April 2nd. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Johnson & Johnson from a "buy" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Saturday, June 21st. Raymond James Financial lowered their price target on shares of Johnson & Johnson from $165.00 to $162.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research note on Monday, April 14th. Sanford C. Bernstein reaffirmed a "market perform" rating on shares of Johnson & Johnson in a research note on Wednesday, April 16th. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada reissued an "outperform" rating and issued a $181.00 target price on shares of Johnson & Johnson in a research note on Thursday, June 5th. Eleven analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seven have issued a buy rating and three have given a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $170.88.

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.