Verdence Capital Advisors LLC Cuts Holdings in Johnson & Johnson $JNJ

Key Points

• Verdence Capital Advisors LLC reduced its stake in Johnson & Johnson by 7.4%, selling 3,478 shares and holding 43,712 shares valued at approximately $6.68 million by the end of the second quarter.
• Multiple institutional investors have increased their holdings in Johnson & Johnson, with Apexium Financial boosting its stake by 10.7% and Avanza Fonder increasing by 2.9% in the latest quarters.
• Johnson & Johnson announced a quarterly dividend of $1.30 per share, with an ex-dividend date set for November 25, reflecting an annualized dividend yield of 2.7%.

Verdence Capital Advisors LLC trimmed its holdings in shares of Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ - Free Report) by 7.4% during the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 43,712 shares of the company's stock after selling 3,478 shares during the period. Verdence Capital Advisors LLC's holdings in Johnson & Johnson were worth $6,677,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Apexium Financial LP boosted its stake in shares of Johnson & Johnson by 10.7% in the 1st quarter. Apexium Financial LP now owns 23,989 shares of the company's stock worth $3,978,000 after buying an additional 2,310 shares during the last quarter. Avanza Fonder AB boosted its stake in shares of Johnson & Johnson by 2.9% in the 2nd quarter. Avanza Fonder AB now owns 234,647 shares of the company's stock worth $35,842,000 after buying an additional 6,566 shares during the last quarter. Joel Isaacson & Co. LLC boosted its stake in shares of Johnson & Johnson by 3.5% in the 1st quarter. Joel Isaacson & Co. LLC now owns 74,132 shares of the company's stock worth $12,294,000 after buying an additional 2,526 shares during the last quarter. Tokio Marine Asset Management Co. Ltd. boosted its stake in shares of Johnson & Johnson by 7.0% in the 1st quarter. Tokio Marine Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 73,350 shares of the company's stock worth $12,164,000 after buying an additional 4,816 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Absher Wealth Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of Johnson & Johnson by 1.2% in the 1st quarter. Absher Wealth Management LLC now owns 215,584 shares of the company's stock worth $35,752,000 after buying an additional 2,469 shares during the last quarter. 69.55% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Johnson & Johnson Price Performance

NYSE:JNJ opened at $190.96 on Thursday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.76, a current ratio of 1.01 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.50. The business's 50-day simple moving average is $179.68 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $164.34. The stock has a market cap of $459.90 billion, a PE ratio of 18.43, a P/E/G ratio of 2.40 and a beta of 0.40. Johnson & Johnson has a 52 week low of $140.68 and a 52 week high of $194.40.

Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, August 30th. The company reported $2.26 EPS for the quarter. The business had revenue of $24.02 billion for the quarter. Johnson & Johnson had a return on equity of 33.08% and a net margin of 27.26%. As a group, analysts forecast that Johnson & Johnson will post 10.58 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Johnson & Johnson Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 9th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, November 25th will be issued a dividend of $1.30 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, November 25th. This represents a $5.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.7%. Johnson & Johnson's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 55.61%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms have recently issued reports on JNJ. The Goldman Sachs Group raised their price target on Johnson & Johnson from $186.00 to $212.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, October 9th. Guggenheim upgraded Johnson & Johnson from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and lifted their target price for the company from $167.00 to $206.00 in a research report on Tuesday, September 23rd. Bank of America boosted their price target on Johnson & Johnson from $198.00 to $204.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a report on Wednesday. HSBC boosted their price target on Johnson & Johnson from $188.00 to $210.00 in a report on Tuesday, September 30th. Finally, Weiss Ratings raised Johnson & Johnson from a "hold (c+)" rating to a "buy (b-)" rating in a report on Wednesday, October 8th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, twelve have assigned a Buy rating and eight have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $199.59.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Johnson & Johnson news, EVP Jennifer L. Taubert sold 56,471 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Thursday, September 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $177.81, for a total transaction of $10,041,108.51. Following the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 178,013 shares of the company's stock, valued at $31,652,491.53. This trade represents a 24.08% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. 0.16% of the stock is currently owned by corporate 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.

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