McIlrath & Eck LLC Trims Stake in Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ)

McIlrath & Eck LLC lowered its holdings in Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ - Free Report) by 78.1% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 634 shares of the company's stock after selling 2,258 shares during the quarter. McIlrath & Eck LLC's holdings in Johnson & Johnson were worth $92,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in JNJ. MRP Capital Investments LLC raised its holdings in shares of Johnson & Johnson by 4.1% during the fourth quarter. MRP Capital Investments LLC now owns 1,640 shares of the company's stock worth $237,000 after acquiring an additional 65 shares in the last quarter. Syverson Strege & Co lifted its holdings in shares of Johnson & Johnson by 4.9% during the fourth quarter. Syverson Strege & Co now owns 1,394 shares of the company's stock worth $202,000 after buying an additional 65 shares during the last quarter. Werba Rubin Papier Wealth Management boosted its holdings in Johnson & Johnson by 3.3% in the 4th quarter. Werba Rubin Papier Wealth Management now owns 2,080 shares of the company's stock valued at $301,000 after purchasing an additional 66 shares during the period. Denali Advisors LLC grew its position in Johnson & Johnson by 1.3% during the fourth quarter. Denali Advisors LLC now owns 5,128 shares of the company's stock worth $742,000 after buying an additional 67 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Sage Mountain Advisors LLC raised its holdings in Johnson & Johnson by 0.5% in the 4th quarter. Sage Mountain Advisors LLC now owns 14,564 shares of the company's stock valued at $2,106,000 after acquiring an additional 67 shares in the last quarter. 69.55% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Johnson & Johnson Price Performance

Shares of JNJ stock traded up $0.51 on Monday, reaching $153.12. The company had a trading volume of 6,727,130 shares, compared to its average volume of 7,965,146. Johnson & Johnson has a one year low of $140.68 and a one year high of $169.99. The stock has a market capitalization of $368.41 billion, a PE ratio of 23.02, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.56 and a beta of 0.42. The company has a quick ratio of 0.86, a current ratio of 1.11 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.43. The business's 50-day moving average is $155.24 and its 200 day moving average is $153.67.

Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, April 15th. The company reported $2.77 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $2.59 by $0.18. Johnson & Johnson had a return on equity of 34.24% and a net margin of 18.20%. The business had revenue of $21.89 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $21.65 billion. Equities research analysts forecast that Johnson & Johnson will post 10.58 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Johnson & Johnson Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, June 10th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, May 27th will be issued a dividend of $1.30 per share. This is a boost from Johnson & Johnson's previous quarterly dividend of $1.24. This represents a $5.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.40%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, May 27th. Johnson & Johnson's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 57.84%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Johnson & Johnson

In other Johnson & Johnson news, VP Robert J. Decker sold 6,999 shares of Johnson & Johnson stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $165.88, for a total transaction of $1,160,994.12. Following the transaction, the vice president now owns 21,001 shares of the company's stock, valued at $3,483,645.88. This trade represents a 25.00% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Company insiders own 0.16% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

JNJ has been the subject of several research reports. Leerink Partners cut Johnson & Johnson from an "outperform" rating to a "market perform" rating and reduced their target price for the stock from $169.00 to $153.00 in a research report on Tuesday, May 13th. Barclays cut their price target on Johnson & Johnson from $166.00 to $165.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a report on Thursday, April 17th. Benchmark raised shares of Johnson & Johnson to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, April 24th. Sanford C. Bernstein reiterated a "market perform" rating on shares of Johnson & Johnson in a report on Wednesday, April 16th. Finally, Bank of America cut their price objective on shares of Johnson & Johnson from $171.00 to $159.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, April 10th. Eleven analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have given a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $170.88.

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.