Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio Lowers Stake in Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ)

Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio decreased its position in Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ - Free Report) by 3.6% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 1,201,688 shares of the company's stock after selling 44,244 shares during the period. Johnson & Johnson accounts for about 0.6% of Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio's investment portfolio, making the stock its 23rd biggest position. Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio's holdings in Johnson & Johnson were worth $173,788,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Neo Ivy Capital Management boosted its holdings in shares of Johnson & Johnson by 3,733.5% in the fourth quarter. Neo Ivy Capital Management now owns 57,042 shares of the company's stock valued at $8,249,000 after purchasing an additional 55,554 shares during the period. Vega Investment Solutions purchased a new stake in shares of Johnson & Johnson in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $83,000. Strait & Sound Wealth Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Johnson & Johnson by 6.0% in the fourth quarter. Strait & Sound Wealth Management LLC now owns 11,047 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,598,000 after purchasing an additional 621 shares during the period. BIP Alliance LLC purchased a new stake in Johnson & Johnson during the fourth quarter worth $368,000. Finally, Sunbelt Securities Inc. lifted its holdings in Johnson & Johnson by 11.3% during the fourth quarter. Sunbelt Securities Inc. now owns 56,066 shares of the company's stock worth $8,037,000 after buying an additional 5,698 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 69.55% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of analysts have weighed in on the company. Benchmark upgraded Johnson & Johnson to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Thursday, April 24th. Barclays lowered their target price 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. Morgan Stanley upped their target price on Johnson & Johnson from $164.00 to $169.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a report on Wednesday, April 16th. Leerink Partners downgraded Johnson & Johnson from an "outperform" rating to a "market perform" rating and reduced their price target for the stock from $169.00 to $153.00 in a research report on Tuesday, May 13th. Finally, Leerink Partnrs downgraded Johnson & Johnson from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Tuesday, May 13th. Eleven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have assigned a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $170.88.

Johnson & Johnson Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE JNJ traded up $0.51 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $153.12. The stock had a trading volume of 6,727,130 shares, compared to its average volume of 7,965,146. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.43, a quick ratio of 0.86 and a current ratio of 1.11. The company has a 50 day moving average of $155.24 and a two-hundred day moving average of $153.69. Johnson & Johnson has a twelve month low of $140.68 and a twelve month high of $169.99. The firm has a market cap of $368.41 billion, a PE ratio of 23.02, a PEG ratio of 2.56 and a beta of 0.42.

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

Johnson & Johnson Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, June 10th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, May 27th will be given a dividend of $1.30 per share. This is an increase from Johnson & Johnson's previous quarterly dividend of $1.24. This represents a $5.20 annualized dividend and a 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%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Johnson & Johnson news, VP Robert J. Decker sold 6,999 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $165.88, for a total transaction of $1,160,994.12. Following the sale, the vice president now directly owns 21,001 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $3,483,645.88. This trade represents a 25.00% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. 0.16% of the stock is owned by insiders.

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.