Bank of America Raises Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ) Price Target to $175.00

Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ - Free Report) had its target price hoisted by Bank of America from $161.00 to $175.00 in a research note released on Thursday,Benzinga reports. The firm currently has a neutral rating on the stock.

JNJ has been the subject of a number of other research reports. Leerink Partnrs cut Johnson & Johnson from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Tuesday, May 13th. Raymond James Financial cut their target price on Johnson & Johnson from $165.00 to $162.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, April 14th. Benchmark raised Johnson & Johnson to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, April 24th. The Goldman Sachs Group raised Johnson & Johnson from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and upped their target price for the company from $157.00 to $172.00 in a research report on Wednesday, April 9th. Finally, Morgan Stanley upped their target price on Johnson & Johnson from $171.00 to $176.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Thursday. Eleven investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nine have assigned a buy rating and three have assigned a strong buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Johnson & Johnson presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $174.11.

Johnson & Johnson Stock Up 0.4%

NYSE JNJ traded up $0.67 on Thursday, reaching $163.65. The company had a trading volume of 9,764,459 shares, compared to its average volume of 8,146,242. The firm has a market capitalization of $393.75 billion, a PE ratio of 17.50, a P/E/G ratio of 2.21 and a beta of 0.41. Johnson & Johnson has a 1 year low of $140.68 and a 1 year high of $169.99. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $154.10 and a 200-day moving average of $154.84. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.49, a current ratio of 1.26 and a quick ratio of 1.03.

Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results 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 during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $22.85 billion. Johnson & Johnson had a return on equity of 33.07% and a net margin of 25.00%. Johnson & Johnson's quarterly revenue was up 5.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $2.82 EPS. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Johnson & Johnson will post 10.58 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Johnson & Johnson Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 9th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, August 26th will be given a $1.30 dividend. This represents a $5.20 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.18%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, August 26th. Johnson & Johnson's dividend payout ratio is presently 55.61%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Johnson & Johnson

Several large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. EWA LLC increased its position in Johnson & Johnson by 26.8% in the second quarter. EWA LLC now owns 2,860 shares of the company's stock worth $437,000 after buying an additional 604 shares during the period. Philip James Wealth Mangement LLC increased its position in Johnson & Johnson by 13.5% in the second quarter. Philip James Wealth Mangement LLC now owns 87,853 shares of the company's stock worth $13,420,000 after buying an additional 10,438 shares during the period. Gold Investment Management Ltd. grew its stake in shares of Johnson & Johnson by 1.5% in the second quarter. Gold Investment Management Ltd. now owns 18,790 shares of the company's stock worth $2,914,000 after purchasing an additional 279 shares in the last quarter. Naples Global Advisors LLC increased its holdings in shares of Johnson & Johnson by 3.5% during the second quarter. Naples Global Advisors LLC now owns 48,414 shares of the company's stock valued at $7,395,000 after purchasing an additional 1,655 shares during the period. Finally, Pure Financial Advisors LLC increased its holdings in shares of Johnson & Johnson by 40.9% during the second quarter. Pure Financial Advisors LLC now owns 28,037 shares of the company's stock valued at $4,283,000 after purchasing an additional 8,140 shares during the period. 69.55% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.