Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ) Rating Increased to Strong-Buy at Daiwa America

Key Points

• Johnson & Johnson has been upgraded to a "strong-buy" rating by Daiwa America, signaling a positive outlook for the company's stock.
• Equities analysts have increased target prices for Johnson & Johnson, with the consensus target price reaching $200.06, indicating investor confidence in the company's performance.
• Recent insider trading saw EVP Jennifer L. Taubert sell over 56,000 shares at an average price of $177.81, reflecting a notable transaction in the company's stock ownership.

Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ - Get Free Report) was upgraded by Daiwa America from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report issued on Monday,Zacks.com reports.

Several other equities analysts also recently issued reports on the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their target price on Johnson & Johnson from $185.00 to $200.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Tuesday, September 16th. HSBC boosted their price objective on Johnson & Johnson from $210.00 to $215.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday, October 16th. Argus set a $210.00 target price on shares of Johnson & Johnson in a research note on Wednesday, October 15th. Barclays increased their target price on shares of Johnson & Johnson from $165.00 to $176.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Thursday, July 17th. Finally, Guggenheim raised shares of Johnson & Johnson from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and increased their target price for the stock from $167.00 to $206.00 in a research note on Tuesday, September 23rd. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fourteen have assigned a Buy rating and eight have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $200.06.

Johnson & Johnson Trading Up 0.3%

Shares of NYSE:JNJ opened at $193.78 on Monday. Johnson & Johnson has a 12-month low of $140.68 and a 12-month high of $194.48. The business's fifty day simple moving average is $180.89 and its 200-day simple moving average is $165.18. The company has a market capitalization of $466.68 billion, a PE ratio of 18.70, a P/E/G ratio of 2.27 and a beta of 0.40. The company has a current ratio of 1.01, a quick ratio of 0.76 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.50.

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

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Johnson & Johnson news, EVP Jennifer L. Taubert sold 56,471 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Thursday, September 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $177.81, for a total value of $10,041,108.51. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president owned 178,013 shares in the company, valued at $31,652,491.53. The trade was a 24.08% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Company insiders own 0.16% of the company's stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Johnson & Johnson

Several institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Norges Bank acquired a new position in Johnson & Johnson in the second quarter valued at $4,877,174,000. Nuveen LLC acquired a new position in Johnson & Johnson in the first quarter valued at $1,369,188,000. Laurel Wealth Advisors LLC increased its stake in Johnson & Johnson by 15,040.6% in the second quarter. Laurel Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 7,420,699 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,133,512,000 after purchasing an additional 7,371,687 shares during the period. Bank of New York Mellon Corp increased its stake in shares of Johnson & Johnson by 26.4% during the first quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 23,182,464 shares of the company's stock worth $3,844,580,000 after acquiring an additional 4,842,582 shares during the period. Finally, Vanguard Group Inc. increased its stake in shares of Johnson & Johnson by 1.3% during the second quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 237,047,859 shares of the company's stock worth $36,209,060,000 after acquiring an additional 3,085,180 shares during the period. 69.55% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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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