Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ) Shares Acquired by Thurston Springer Miller Herd & Titak Inc.

Thurston Springer Miller Herd & Titak Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ - Free Report) by 27.1% during the first quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 22,732 shares of the company's stock after acquiring an additional 4,844 shares during the quarter. Thurston Springer Miller Herd & Titak Inc.'s holdings in Johnson & Johnson were worth $3,770,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. WealthTrak Capital Management LLC purchased a new stake in Johnson & Johnson in the 4th quarter valued at $26,000. Mountain Hill Investment Partners Corp. purchased a new stake in shares of Johnson & Johnson in the fourth quarter valued at about $29,000. Bay Harbor Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in Johnson & Johnson during the fourth quarter worth about $32,000. Conquis Financial LLC purchased a new position in Johnson & Johnson during the fourth quarter worth about $33,000. Finally, Bernard Wealth Management Corp. acquired a new position in Johnson & Johnson in the 4th quarter valued at about $36,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 69.55% of the company's stock.

Johnson & Johnson Price Performance

Shares of JNJ traded up $1.36 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $155.02. The company had a trading volume of 5,387,625 shares, compared to its average volume of 7,927,044. The company has a current ratio of 1.11, a quick ratio of 0.86 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.43. Johnson & Johnson has a 12-month low of $140.68 and a 12-month high of $169.99. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $153.56 and a 200-day simple moving average of $153.67. The company has a market capitalization of $372.99 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 23.31, a PEG ratio of 2.56 and a beta of 0.42.

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

Johnson & Johnson Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, June 10th. Investors of record on Tuesday, May 27th will be given a $1.30 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, May 27th. This is a positive change from Johnson & Johnson's previous quarterly dividend of $1.24. This represents a $5.20 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.35%. Johnson & Johnson's payout ratio is currently 57.84%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts recently commented on the company. Raymond James decreased their price objective on Johnson & Johnson from $165.00 to $162.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a report on Monday, April 14th. Morgan Stanley increased their price target on Johnson & Johnson from $164.00 to $169.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a report on Wednesday, April 16th. The Goldman Sachs Group raised Johnson & Johnson from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and raised their price objective for the stock from $157.00 to $172.00 in a research report on Wednesday, April 9th. Wall Street Zen cut shares of Johnson & Johnson from a "strong-buy" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, May 22nd. Finally, Benchmark upgraded shares of Johnson & Johnson to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, April 24th. Eleven analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have assigned a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average 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.