WESCAP Management Group Inc. Lowers Position in Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ)

Key Points

• WESCAP Management Group Inc. reduced its stake in Johnson & Johnson by 34.7%, selling 1,546 shares and keeping 2,907 shares valued at approximately $482,000.
• Johnson & Johnson reported earnings per share (EPS) of $2.77, above analysts' expectations, with a revenue increase of 5.8% year-over-year amounting to $23.74 billion.
• The company declared a quarterly dividend of $1.30 per share, resulting in an annualized yield of 3.0% for shareholders of record as of August 26th.

WESCAP Management Group Inc. trimmed its stake in shares of Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ - Free Report) by 34.7% in the first quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 2,907 shares of the company's stock after selling 1,546 shares during the quarter. WESCAP Management Group Inc.'s holdings in Johnson & Johnson were worth $482,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Highline Wealth Partners LLC raised its stake in shares of Johnson & Johnson by 51.8% in the first quarter. Highline Wealth Partners LLC now owns 252 shares of the company's stock valued at $42,000 after buying an additional 86 shares during the period. Stone House Investment Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Johnson & Johnson during the 1st quarter valued at $47,000. von Borstel & Associates Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Johnson & Johnson during the 1st quarter valued at $49,000. Capital A Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Johnson & Johnson in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $50,000. Finally, Harvest Fund Management Co. Ltd bought a new position in shares of Johnson & Johnson in the first quarter valued at approximately $52,000. 69.55% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts have weighed in on JNJ shares. Erste Group Bank upgraded Johnson & Johnson from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 23rd. Benchmark raised Johnson & Johnson to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Thursday, April 24th. Guggenheim reissued a "neutral" rating and set a $167.00 price objective (up from $164.00) on shares of Johnson & Johnson in a report on Thursday, July 17th. UBS Group raised their price objective on Johnson & Johnson from $180.00 to $190.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday, July 17th. Finally, Leerink Partnrs cut Johnson & Johnson from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Tuesday, May 13th. Nine equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, ten have issued a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $174.50.

Johnson & Johnson Trading Up 0.3%

JNJ traded up $0.54 on Thursday, hitting $174.96. 8,240,900 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 9,039,433. The stock has a market capitalization of $421.37 billion, a PE ratio of 18.71, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.20 and a beta of 0.41. Johnson & Johnson has a 12 month low of $140.68 and a 12 month high of $175.72. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $160.42 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $158.01. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.50, a quick ratio of 0.76 and a current ratio of 1.01.

Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 16th. The company reported $2.77 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $2.68 by $0.09. The firm had revenue of $23.74 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $22.85 billion. Johnson & Johnson had a return on equity of 32.49% and a net margin of 25.00%. The business's quarterly revenue was up 5.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the company earned $2.82 EPS. Sell-side analysts expect that Johnson & Johnson will post 10.58 earnings per share for the current year.

Johnson & Johnson Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 9th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, August 26th will be given a $1.30 dividend. This represents a $5.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.0%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, August 26th. Johnson & Johnson's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 55.61%.

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.