Analysts Set Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ) Target Price at $170.88

Shares of Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ - Get Free Report) have earned an average rating of "Moderate Buy" from the twenty research firms that are currently covering the company, Marketbeat.com reports. Eleven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seven have issued a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company. The average 1 year price target among brokers that have covered the stock in the last year is $170.88.

Several research analysts have weighed in on JNJ shares. The Goldman Sachs Group upgraded Johnson & Johnson from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and upped their price target for the stock from $157.00 to $172.00 in a research note on Wednesday, April 9th. Royal Bank Of Canada restated an "outperform" rating and issued a $181.00 price target on shares of Johnson & Johnson in a research note on Thursday, June 5th. Benchmark upgraded Johnson & Johnson to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, April 24th. Leerink Partners downgraded Johnson & Johnson from an "outperform" rating to a "market perform" rating and lowered their target price for the company 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.

Johnson & Johnson Stock Performance

JNJ traded up $0.34 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $155.90. The company had a trading volume of 3,482,521 shares, compared to its average volume of 8,059,757. The company has a quick ratio of 1.03, a current ratio of 1.26 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.49. The business has a 50-day moving average of $153.68 and a two-hundred day moving average of $154.09. The company has a market cap of $375.11 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.34, a P/E/G ratio of 2.36 and a beta of 0.41. Johnson & Johnson has a 1 year low of $140.68 and a 1 year high of $169.99.

Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, April 15th. The company reported $2.77 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $2.59 by $0.18. Johnson & Johnson had a return on equity of 33.46% and a net margin of 24.42%. The firm had revenue of $21.89 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $21.65 billion. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Johnson & Johnson will post 10.58 earnings per share for the current fiscal 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 paid a $1.30 dividend. This is a positive change from Johnson & Johnson's previous quarterly dividend of $1.24. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, May 27th. This represents a $5.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.34%. Johnson & Johnson's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 57.84%.

Institutional Trading of Johnson & Johnson

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. WealthTrak Capital Management LLC purchased a new stake in Johnson & Johnson in the fourth quarter worth $26,000. Mountain Hill Investment Partners Corp. purchased a new position in shares of Johnson & Johnson during the fourth quarter valued at $29,000. Conquis Financial LLC purchased a new position in shares of Johnson & Johnson during the fourth quarter valued at $33,000. Bernard Wealth Management Corp. purchased a new position in shares of Johnson & Johnson during the fourth quarter valued at $36,000. Finally, Highline Wealth Partners LLC increased its stake in shares of Johnson & Johnson by 51.8% during 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. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 69.55% of the company's stock.

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.