Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ) Shares Down 0.7% After Analyst Downgrade

Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ - Get Free Report)'s stock price traded down 0.7% during mid-day trading on Tuesday after Barclays lowered their price target on the stock from $166.00 to $165.00. Barclays currently has an equal weight rating on the stock. Johnson & Johnson traded as low as $152.10 and last traded at $153.27. 3,332,488 shares changed hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 58% from the average session volume of 7,947,231 shares. The stock had previously closed at $154.36.

JNJ has been the subject of several other reports. StockNews.com upgraded Johnson & Johnson from a "buy" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Saturday, January 25th. Stifel Nicolaus lowered their target price on shares of Johnson & Johnson from $170.00 to $155.00 and set a "hold" rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, January 23rd. Argus upgraded shares of Johnson & Johnson to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Friday, January 24th. Royal Bank of Canada reissued an "outperform" rating and issued a $181.00 target price on shares of Johnson & Johnson in a report on Wednesday. Finally, Bank of America dropped their price target on Johnson & Johnson from $171.00 to $159.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a report on Thursday, April 10th. Nine research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have given a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Johnson & Johnson presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $171.82.

Insider Buying and Selling at Johnson & Johnson

In related news, VP Robert J. Decker sold 6,999 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $165.88, for a total value of $1,160,994.12. Following the sale, the vice president now owns 21,001 shares in the company, valued at $3,483,645.88. This represents a 25.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, EVP Timothy Schmid sold 403 shares of Johnson & Johnson stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $156.15, for a total transaction of $62,928.45. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 15,098 shares in the company, valued at $2,357,552.70. This represents a 2.60 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 0.16% of the company's stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Johnson & Johnson

Several hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of JNJ. MRP Capital Investments LLC lifted its holdings in Johnson & Johnson by 4.1% during the fourth quarter. MRP Capital Investments LLC now owns 1,640 shares of the company's stock worth $237,000 after acquiring an additional 65 shares during the period. Syverson Strege & Co increased its position in shares of Johnson & Johnson by 4.9% during the 4th quarter. Syverson Strege & Co now owns 1,394 shares of the company's stock valued at $202,000 after purchasing an additional 65 shares during the last quarter. Werba Rubin Papier Wealth Management raised its stake in shares of Johnson & Johnson by 3.3% during the 4th quarter. Werba Rubin Papier Wealth Management now owns 2,080 shares of the company's stock worth $301,000 after purchasing an additional 66 shares during the period. Denali Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Johnson & Johnson by 1.3% in the 4th quarter. Denali Advisors LLC now owns 5,128 shares of the company's stock worth $742,000 after buying an additional 67 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Sage Mountain Advisors LLC grew its position in Johnson & Johnson by 0.5% during the fourth quarter. Sage Mountain Advisors LLC now owns 14,564 shares of the company's stock valued at $2,106,000 after buying an additional 67 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 69.55% of the company's stock.

Johnson & Johnson Trading Up 2.3 %

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.43, a current ratio of 1.11 and a quick ratio of 0.86. The stock has a market capitalization of $379.37 billion, a PE ratio of 23.67, a PEG ratio of 2.56 and a beta of 0.49. The stock's 50 day simple moving average is $159.49 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $155.03.

Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 15th. The company reported $2.77 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.59 by $0.18. The company had revenue of $21.89 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $21.65 billion. Johnson & Johnson had a return on equity of 34.24% and a net margin of 18.20%. On average, sell-side analysts expect that Johnson & Johnson will post 10.58 EPS for the current year.

Johnson & Johnson Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, June 10th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, May 27th will be paid a $1.30 dividend. This represents a $5.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.30%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, May 27th. This is a boost from Johnson & Johnson's previous quarterly dividend of $1.24. Johnson & Johnson's payout ratio is currently 74.59%.

About Johnson & Johnson

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.