Sterling Financial Planning Inc. Has $2.04 Million Stake in Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ)

Sterling Financial Planning Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ - Free Report) by 47.6% during the first quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 12,295 shares of the company's stock after acquiring an additional 3,966 shares during the quarter. Sterling Financial Planning Inc.'s holdings in Johnson & Johnson were worth $2,039,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors have also made changes to their positions in the stock. MRP Capital Investments LLC grew its stake in shares of Johnson & Johnson by 4.1% in the 4th quarter. MRP Capital Investments LLC now owns 1,640 shares of the company's stock valued at $237,000 after purchasing an additional 65 shares during the last quarter. Syverson Strege & Co lifted its stake in Johnson & Johnson by 4.9% in the 4th quarter. Syverson Strege & Co now owns 1,394 shares of the company's stock valued at $202,000 after buying an additional 65 shares in the last quarter. Sage Mountain Advisors LLC boosted its stake in shares of Johnson & Johnson by 0.5% during the 4th quarter. Sage Mountain Advisors LLC now owns 14,564 shares of the company's stock worth $2,106,000 after purchasing an additional 67 shares during the last quarter. Sovereign Financial Group Inc. boosted its stake in Johnson & Johnson by 1.8% in the 1st quarter. Sovereign Financial Group Inc. now owns 3,928 shares of the company's stock worth $651,000 after buying an additional 69 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Nabity Jensen Investment Management Inc grew its stake in shares of Johnson & Johnson by 1.5% during the 1st quarter. Nabity Jensen Investment Management Inc now owns 4,624 shares of the company's stock valued at $767,000 after buying an additional 69 shares during the period. 69.55% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Johnson & Johnson Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE JNJ traded down $0.78 during trading hours on Monday, hitting $155.23. 6,263,851 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 8,052,623. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.49, a current ratio of 1.26 and a quick ratio of 1.03. The company's 50 day moving average is $153.68 and its 200 day moving average is $154.17. The firm has a market capitalization of $373.49 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.27, a P/E/G ratio of 2.36 and a beta of 0.41. Johnson & Johnson has a one year low of $140.68 and a one year high of $169.99.

Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 15th. The company reported $2.77 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $2.59 by $0.18. The firm had revenue of $21.89 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $21.65 billion. Johnson & Johnson had a net margin of 24.42% and a return on equity of 33.46%. On average, research analysts expect that Johnson & Johnson will post 10.58 EPS for the current year.

Johnson & Johnson Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, June 10th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, May 27th were issued a dividend of $1.30 per share. This represents a $5.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.35%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, May 27th. This is a positive change from Johnson & Johnson's previous quarterly dividend of $1.24. Johnson & Johnson's payout ratio is currently 57.84%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts have commented on the company. Bank of America cut their price objective on Johnson & Johnson from $171.00 to $159.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, April 10th. Morgan Stanley raised their target price on Johnson & Johnson from $164.00 to $169.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 16th. The Goldman Sachs Group raised shares of Johnson & Johnson from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and raised their target price for the company from $157.00 to $172.00 in a research note on Wednesday, April 9th. Sanford C. Bernstein reiterated a "market perform" rating on shares of Johnson & Johnson in a research report on Wednesday, April 16th. Finally, Raymond James Financial dropped their price target on 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 investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seven have given a buy rating and three have given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $170.88.

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.