Kesler Norman & Wride LLC Sells 38,128 Shares of Johnson & Johnson $JNJ

Key Points

• Kesler Norman & Wride LLC cut its Johnson & Johnson stake by 73.3% in the fourth quarter, selling 38,128 shares and leaving it with 13,923 shares worth about $2.88 million.
• Johnson & Johnson posted a beat on Q1 earnings and revenue, reporting $2.70 EPS on $24.06 billion in sales, while also lifting its full-year EPS guidance to 11.45-11.65.
• The company raised its quarterly dividend to $1.34 per share, and analyst sentiment remains constructive with a consensus Moderate Buy rating and average price target of $253.04.

Kesler Norman & Wride LLC decreased its position in shares of Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ - Free Report) by 73.3% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 13,923 shares of the company's stock after selling 38,128 shares during the period. Kesler Norman & Wride LLC's holdings in Johnson & Johnson were worth $2,881,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in JNJ. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in Johnson & Johnson during the fourth quarter valued at about $6,924,523,000. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its position in Johnson & Johnson by 1.6% during the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 240,349,660 shares of the company's stock valued at $49,740,362,000 after purchasing an additional 3,731,074 shares in the last quarter. Capital International Investors raised its position in Johnson & Johnson by 545.6% during the third quarter. Capital International Investors now owns 3,865,050 shares of the company's stock valued at $716,657,000 after purchasing an additional 3,266,354 shares in the last quarter. Amundi raised its position in Johnson & Johnson by 19.3% during the third quarter. Amundi now owns 13,354,936 shares of the company's stock valued at $2,512,719,000 after purchasing an additional 2,163,838 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Marshall Wace LLP raised its position in Johnson & Johnson by 126.3% during the third quarter. Marshall Wace LLP now owns 3,584,162 shares of the company's stock valued at $664,575,000 after purchasing an additional 2,000,609 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 69.55% of the company's stock.

Key Stories Impacting Johnson & Johnson

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

• Positive Sentiment: CNBC’s Jim Cramer pointed to Johnson & Johnson as one of five stocks to buy for diversification outside the AI trade, which could attract investors looking for lower-volatility, defensive exposure. Jim Cramer says look to buy these 5 stocks outside the AI trade for diversification
• Positive Sentiment: Scotiabank reiterated its Buy rating on Johnson & Johnson, reinforcing Wall Street confidence in the company’s earnings durability and dividend appeal. Scotiabank Sticks to Their Buy Rating for Johnson & Johnson (JNJ)
• Positive Sentiment: Several articles highlighted JNJ as one of the best dividend-paying stocks to own, which can support the stock as investors favor income and defensive healthcare names. Is Johnson & Johnson (JNJ) One of the Best Dividend Paying Stocks to Buy Right Now?
• Neutral Sentiment: Recent commentary also questioned whether Johnson & Johnson’s strong one-year rally leaves limited upside near current levels, suggesting valuation could temper enthusiasm. Is It Too Late To Consider Johnson & Johnson (JNJ) After Its 48% One-Year Surge?
• Neutral Sentiment: A Motley Fool piece argued JNJ’s effort to challenge AbbVie’s growth driver should not alarm AbbVie shareholders, implying the competitive angle is not a major near-term negative for Johnson & Johnson itself. Johnson & Johnson Hopes to Dethrone AbbVie's Biggest Growth Driver. Here's Why Investors Shouldn't Panic

Johnson & Johnson Stock Down 0.2%

NYSE JNJ opened at $223.00 on Wednesday. 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 stock has a market capitalization of $536.81 billion, a PE ratio of 25.78, a PEG ratio of 2.19 and a beta of 0.26. Johnson & Johnson has a 1 year low of $149.04 and a 1 year high of $251.71. The business's 50-day moving average is $232.75 and its 200 day moving average is $225.29.

Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, April 14th. The company reported $2.70 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.68 by $0.02. The company had revenue of $24.06 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $23.60 billion. Johnson & Johnson had a return on equity of 32.60% and a net margin of 21.83%.Johnson & Johnson's quarterly revenue was up 9.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the firm earned $2.77 earnings per share. Johnson & Johnson has set its FY 2026 guidance at 11.450-11.650 EPS. Sell-side analysts forecast that Johnson & Johnson will post 11.57 earnings per share for the current year.

Johnson & Johnson Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, June 9th. Investors of record on Tuesday, May 26th will be paid a $1.34 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, May 26th. This is a boost from Johnson & Johnson's previous quarterly dividend of $1.30. This represents a $5.36 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.4%. Johnson & Johnson's payout ratio is 61.97%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

JNJ has been the topic of a number of research reports. Sanford C. Bernstein raised their price target on Johnson & Johnson from $225.00 to $251.00 and gave the company a "market perform" rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 15th. HSBC lifted their price objective on Johnson & Johnson from $265.00 to $280.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Tuesday, March 17th. Weiss Ratings downgraded Johnson & Johnson from a "buy (b+)" rating to a "buy (b)" rating in a report on Friday, April 24th. The Goldman Sachs Group lifted their price objective on Johnson & Johnson from $265.00 to $275.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, April 15th. Finally, Leerink Partners upgraded Johnson & Johnson from a "market perform" rating to an "outperform" rating and set a $265.00 price objective on the stock in a report on Wednesday, May 13th. Twenty investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and seven have given a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $253.04.

Johnson & Johnson Profile

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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