Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ) Shares Sold by Avalon Trust Co

Key Points

• Avalon Trust Co reduced its stake in Johnson & Johnson by 5.4%, selling 2,743 shares during the first quarter, leaving them with shares valued at $7,944,000.
• Analysts have varied opinions on Johnson & Johnson, with nine rating it as hold, ten as buy, and a consensus price target of $174.50.
• The company announced a quarterly dividend of $1.30, representing an annualized dividend of $5.20, yielding 3.1% for investors with a payout ratio of 55.61%.

Avalon Trust Co lessened its holdings in shares of Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ - Free Report) by 5.4% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 47,904 shares of the company's stock after selling 2,743 shares during the period. Avalon Trust Co's holdings in Johnson & Johnson were worth $7,944,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Manchester Capital Management LLC increased its stake in Johnson & Johnson by 1.9% in the first quarter. Manchester Capital Management LLC now owns 34,729 shares of the company's stock valued at $5,759,000 after purchasing an additional 651 shares during the last quarter. Delta Financial Group Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Johnson & Johnson by 2.9% in the 1st quarter. Delta Financial Group Inc. now owns 25,209 shares of the company's stock valued at $4,116,000 after buying an additional 706 shares in the last quarter. Scotia Capital Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Johnson & Johnson by 0.4% in the 1st quarter. Scotia Capital Inc. now owns 1,307,306 shares of the company's stock valued at $216,804,000 after buying an additional 4,913 shares in the last quarter. Cheviot Value Management LLC grew its position in shares of Johnson & Johnson by 11.2% in the 1st quarter. Cheviot Value Management LLC now owns 172,696 shares of the company's stock valued at $26,768,000 after buying an additional 17,378 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Liberty Wealth Management LLC raised its stake in Johnson & Johnson by 288.6% during the 1st quarter. Liberty Wealth Management LLC now owns 13,767 shares of the company's stock worth $2,283,000 after acquiring an additional 10,224 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 69.55% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

JNJ has been the subject of several research analyst reports. Guggenheim restated a "neutral" rating and issued a $167.00 price objective (up previously from $164.00) on shares of Johnson & Johnson in a research note on Thursday, July 17th. Leerink Partners cut Johnson & Johnson from an "outperform" rating to a "market perform" rating and decreased their target price for the company from $169.00 to $153.00 in a research report on Tuesday, May 13th. Royal Bank Of Canada lifted their price target on Johnson & Johnson from $181.00 to $185.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Thursday, July 17th. Leerink Partnrs downgraded Johnson & Johnson from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Tuesday, May 13th. Finally, Raymond James Financial lowered their target price on shares of Johnson & Johnson from $165.00 to $162.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, April 14th. Nine research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, ten have assigned a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $174.50.

Johnson & Johnson Trading Up 1.6%

Shares of JNJ opened at $167.33 on Friday. Johnson & Johnson has a twelve month low of $140.68 and a twelve month high of $169.99. The company has a current ratio of 1.01, a quick ratio of 0.76 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.50. The firm has a market capitalization of $402.99 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.90, a PEG ratio of 2.13 and a beta of 0.41. The firm's 50-day moving average is $157.46 and its two-hundred day moving average is $156.68.

Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 16th. The company reported $2.77 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $2.68 by $0.09. The business had revenue of $23.74 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $22.85 billion. Johnson & Johnson had a return on equity of 32.49% and a net margin of 25.00%. The company's revenue was up 5.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $2.82 EPS. On average, research analysts predict that Johnson & Johnson will post 10.58 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Johnson & Johnson Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 9th. Investors of record on Tuesday, August 26th will be paid a $1.30 dividend. This represents a $5.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.1%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, August 26th. Johnson & Johnson's dividend payout ratio 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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