Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ) Stock Holdings Lifted by Advocate Group LLC

Advocate Group LLC raised its holdings in shares of Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ - Free Report) by 7.2% during the first quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm owned 65,367 shares of the company's stock after purchasing an additional 4,414 shares during the period. Johnson & Johnson accounts for about 2.0% of Advocate Group LLC's portfolio, making the stock its 9th largest position. Advocate Group LLC's holdings in Johnson & Johnson were worth $10,840,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in JNJ. WealthTrak Capital Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Johnson & Johnson in the 4th quarter worth approximately $26,000. Mountain Hill Investment Partners Corp. purchased a new position in shares of Johnson & Johnson in the 4th quarter worth approximately $29,000. Conquis Financial LLC purchased a new position in shares of Johnson & Johnson in the 4th quarter worth approximately $33,000. Bernard Wealth Management Corp. purchased a new position in shares of Johnson & Johnson in the 4th quarter worth approximately $36,000. Finally, Runnymede Capital Advisors Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Johnson & Johnson in the 4th quarter worth approximately $38,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 69.55% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. Wall Street Zen raised shares of Johnson & Johnson from a "buy" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Saturday. Benchmark upgraded shares of Johnson & Johnson to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, April 24th. Leerink Partnrs lowered shares of Johnson & Johnson from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Tuesday, May 13th. Leerink Partners lowered shares of Johnson & Johnson from an "outperform" rating to a "market perform" rating and cut their price target for the company from $169.00 to $153.00 in a research note on Tuesday, May 13th. Finally, Raymond James Financial cut their price target on shares of Johnson & Johnson from $165.00 to $162.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, April 14th. Eleven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seven have issued a buy rating and three have issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Johnson & Johnson currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $170.88.

Johnson & Johnson Stock Down 0.6%

JNJ stock opened at $149.81 on Friday. The firm's fifty day simple moving average is $154.07 and its 200-day simple moving average is $153.65. The company has a market capitalization of $360.44 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.66, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.27 and a beta of 0.42. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.49, a current ratio of 1.26 and a quick ratio of 1.03. Johnson & Johnson has a 12 month low of $140.68 and a 12 month high of $169.99.

Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, April 15th. The company reported $2.77 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.59 by $0.18. The business had revenue of $21.89 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $21.65 billion. Johnson & Johnson had a net margin of 24.42% and a return on equity of 33.46%. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Johnson & Johnson will post 10.58 earnings per share for the current year.

Johnson & Johnson Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, June 10th. Investors of record on Tuesday, May 27th were issued a dividend of $1.30 per share. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, May 27th. This is an increase from Johnson & Johnson's previous quarterly dividend of $1.24. This represents a $5.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.47%. Johnson & Johnson's dividend payout ratio is 57.84%.

About Johnson & Johnson

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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