Johnson & Johnson $JNJ Shares Acquired by Applied Finance Capital Management LLC

Key Points

• Applied Finance Capital Management increased its Johnson & Johnson stake by 41.9% in the fourth quarter, buying 11,406 additional shares and bringing its total to 38,625 shares worth about $7.99 million.
• Wall Street remains constructive on J&J, with 20 analysts rating it a Buy and the stock carrying a consensus Moderate Buy rating and average price target of $253.04.
• Johnson & Johnson beat quarterly earnings estimates, raised its dividend to $1.34 per share, and set FY 2026 EPS guidance of 11.45 to 11.65, signaling continued financial stability and shareholder returns.

Applied Finance Capital Management LLC grew its stake in Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ - Free Report) by 41.9% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 38,625 shares of the company's stock after buying an additional 11,406 shares during the quarter. Applied Finance Capital Management LLC's holdings in Johnson & Johnson were worth $7,993,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the stock. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Johnson & Johnson by 1.6% in the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 240,349,660 shares of the company's stock valued at $49,740,362,000 after buying an additional 3,731,074 shares during the period. Wellington Management Group LLP lifted its holdings in shares of Johnson & Johnson by 3.8% in the 3rd quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 25,832,777 shares of the company's stock valued at $4,789,914,000 after buying an additional 956,239 shares during the period. Bank of New York Mellon Corp lifted its holdings in shares of Johnson & Johnson by 3.5% in the 3rd quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 24,637,649 shares of the company's stock valued at $4,568,313,000 after buying an additional 835,146 shares during the period. Legal & General Group Plc lifted its holdings in shares of Johnson & Johnson by 2.8% in the 3rd quarter. Legal & General Group Plc now owns 19,450,064 shares of the company's stock valued at $3,606,431,000 after buying an additional 532,790 shares during the period. Finally, Amundi raised its holdings in Johnson & Johnson by 19.3% in the 3rd quarter. Amundi now owns 13,354,936 shares of the company's stock worth $2,512,719,000 after purchasing an additional 2,163,838 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 69.55% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms recently weighed in on JNJ. Scotiabank reaffirmed an "outperform" rating on shares of Johnson & Johnson in a report on Thursday, January 22nd. Weiss Ratings cut Johnson & Johnson from a "buy (b+)" rating to a "buy (b)" rating in a report on Friday, April 24th. Barclays upped their price target on Johnson & Johnson from $234.00 to $255.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a report on Wednesday, April 15th. Citigroup upped their price target on Johnson & Johnson from $274.00 to $285.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Tuesday, April 7th. Finally, Daiwa Securities Group upped their price target on Johnson & Johnson from $237.00 to $246.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Thursday, April 16th. Twenty analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and seven have assigned a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Johnson & Johnson presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $253.04.

Insider Activity at Johnson & Johnson

In related news, EVP Vanessa Broadhurst sold 6,197 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $243.39, for a total value of $1,508,287.83. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 23,003 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,598,700.17. This represents a 21.22% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, EVP Timothy Schmid sold 22,623 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $244.33, for a total value of $5,527,477.59. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president owned 26,769 shares of the company's stock, valued at $6,540,469.77. The trade was a 45.80% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders sold 30,142 shares of company stock valued at $7,360,528 over the last quarter. 0.16% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Johnson & Johnson Price Performance

JNJ stock opened at $226.81 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.46, a current ratio of 1.03 and a quick ratio of 0.77. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $235.13 and a 200-day simple moving average of $221.79. The firm has a market capitalization of $545.98 billion, a PE ratio of 26.22, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.26 and a beta of 0.27. Johnson & Johnson has a 1 year low of $149.04 and a 1 year high of $251.71.

Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 14th. The company reported $2.70 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $2.68 by $0.02. The business 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%.The business's revenue was up 9.9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $2.77 earnings per share. Johnson & Johnson has set its FY 2026 guidance at 11.450-11.650 EPS. Equities research analysts anticipate that Johnson & Johnson will post 11.57 earnings per share 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 given a $1.34 dividend. This represents a $5.36 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.4%. This is a boost from Johnson & Johnson's previous quarterly dividend of $1.30. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, May 26th. Johnson & Johnson's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 60.12%.

Key Johnson & Johnson News

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

• Positive Sentiment: Leerink Partners upgraded Johnson & Johnson (JNJ) to Outperform, which can help investor sentiment and suggests the firm sees more upside from current levels. Leerink Partners upgrades Johnson & Johnson (JNJ)
• Positive Sentiment: A new article says J&J’s story is shifting as newer drugs such as Icotyde, Inlexzo, Tecvayli and Tremfya gain attention, while a valuation update nudged fair value slightly higher. That points to continued pipeline progress as a key long-term driver. How The Story For Johnson & Johnson (JNJ) Is Shifting With New Drugs And Legal Twists
• Positive Sentiment: CAPLYTA data highlighted favorable efficacy and safety versus competing antipsychotics, reinforcing the value of J&J’s mental-health franchise and broader pipeline depth. CAPLYTA Data Highlights Johnson & Johnson Valuation And Mental Health Story
• Neutral Sentiment: MeiraGTx reported an asset purchase agreement with Johnson & Johnson for bota-vec, a transaction that appears more strategic than immediately material for earnings, but it shows J&J remains active in bolt-on pipeline deals. MeiraGTx Reports First Quarter 2026 Financial and Operational Results
• Neutral Sentiment: Recent bladder-cancer survey coverage reinforces the need for better therapies, which supports the market’s broader view that J&J’s oncology and urology pipeline could have room to grow, though the report itself does not change fundamentals immediately. Groundbreaking global survey captures the significant patient burden experienced with current standard-of-care bladder cancer treatments, underscoring urgency for continued innovation
• Negative Sentiment: Articles note Johnson & Johnson has been down since its last earnings report, indicating some investors remain cautious despite the company’s stable fundamentals and defensive profile. Why Is Johnson & Johnson (JNJ) Down 3.5% Since Last Earnings Report?

About Johnson & Johnson

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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