Johnson & Johnson $JNJ Shares Bought by Merit Financial Group LLC

Key Points

• Merit Financial Group LLC increased its position in Johnson & Johnson by 30.8%, acquiring 42,294 additional shares, bringing their total holdings to 179,717 shares valued at approximately $27.45 million.
• Several institutional investors, including Nuveen LLC and Bank of New York Mellon Corp, also significantly increased their stakes in Johnson & Johnson, reflecting strong institutional interest in the company.
• Johnson & Johnson recently announced a quarterly dividend of $1.30 per share, marking a 2.8% dividend yield, with its dividend payout ratio currently at 55.61%.

Merit Financial Group LLC raised its position in Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ - Free Report) by 30.8% in the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 179,717 shares of the company's stock after acquiring an additional 42,294 shares during the quarter. Merit Financial Group LLC's holdings in Johnson & Johnson were worth $27,452,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Nuveen LLC purchased a new stake in Johnson & Johnson in the first quarter valued at approximately $1,369,188,000. Bank of New York Mellon Corp lifted its stake in Johnson & Johnson by 26.4% in the first 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 buying an additional 4,842,582 shares during the last quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. lifted its stake in Johnson & Johnson by 1,382.0% in the first quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. now owns 3,030,084 shares of the company's stock valued at $502,509,000 after buying an additional 2,825,626 shares during the last quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. lifted its stake in Johnson & Johnson by 159.6% in the second quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 4,159,260 shares of the company's stock valued at $635,327,000 after buying an additional 2,557,388 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Kingstone Capital Partners Texas LLC purchased a new stake in Johnson & Johnson in the second quarter valued at approximately $401,420,000. 69.55% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Activity

In related news, EVP Jennifer L. Taubert sold 56,471 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, September 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $177.81, for a total value of $10,041,108.51. Following the sale, the executive vice president owned 178,013 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $31,652,491.53. This trade represents a 24.08% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Company insiders own 0.16% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts have recently commented on the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price target on Johnson & Johnson from $185.00 to $200.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Tuesday, September 16th. Guggenheim upgraded Johnson & Johnson from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and upped their price target for the stock from $167.00 to $206.00 in a research note on Tuesday, September 23rd. Piper Sandler restated an "overweight" rating on shares of Johnson & Johnson in a research note on Thursday, July 17th. Morgan Stanley upped their price target on Johnson & Johnson from $171.00 to $176.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Thursday, July 17th. Finally, Erste Group Bank upgraded Johnson & Johnson from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 23rd. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eleven have assigned a Buy rating and nine have given a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Johnson & Johnson currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $189.88.

Johnson & Johnson Price Performance

JNJ stock opened at $188.95 on Wednesday. Johnson & Johnson has a 1 year low of $140.68 and a 1 year high of $189.92. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $177.04 and a 200-day simple moving average of $163.18. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.50, a quick ratio of 0.76 and a current ratio of 1.01. The firm has a market cap of $455.06 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.21, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.40 and a beta of 0.40.

Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 16th. The company reported $2.77 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $2.68 by $0.09. Johnson & Johnson had a return on equity of 32.49% and a net margin of 25.00%.The firm had revenue of $23.74 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $22.85 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $2.82 EPS. Johnson & Johnson's quarterly revenue was up 5.8% on a year-over-year basis. Johnson & Johnson has set its FY 2025 guidance at 10.800-10.900 EPS. On average, equities analysts predict that Johnson & Johnson will post 10.58 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Johnson & Johnson Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, September 9th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, August 26th were given a $1.30 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, August 26th. This represents a $5.20 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.8%. Johnson & Johnson's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 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.

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