Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ) Stock Price Down 1.1% - Should You Sell?

Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ - Get Free Report) shares fell 1.1% on Thursday . The stock traded as low as $153.36 and last traded at $154.63. 1,550,994 shares were traded during trading, a decline of 80% from the average session volume of 7,893,454 shares. The stock had previously closed at $156.31.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities analysts have issued reports on JNJ shares. Barclays decreased their price objective on shares of Johnson & Johnson from $166.00 to $165.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, April 17th. Argus upgraded Johnson & Johnson to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Friday, January 24th. Stifel Nicolaus cut their price objective on Johnson & Johnson from $170.00 to $155.00 and set a "hold" rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, January 23rd. Guggenheim reaffirmed a "neutral" rating on shares of Johnson & Johnson in a research note on Wednesday, April 2nd. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada reissued an "outperform" rating and set a $181.00 price objective on shares of Johnson & Johnson in a research report on Wednesday, April 16th. Nine research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have given a buy rating and three have assigned a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $171.82.

Johnson & Johnson Price Performance

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.43, a quick ratio of 0.86 and a current ratio of 1.11. The firm's fifty day simple moving average is $159.05 and its 200 day simple moving average is $154.73. The firm has a market cap of $375.56 billion, a P/E ratio of 23.47, a P/E/G ratio of 2.56 and a beta of 0.49.

Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, April 15th. The company reported $2.77 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.59 by $0.18. Johnson & Johnson had a return on equity of 34.24% and a net margin of 18.20%. The business had revenue of $21.89 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $21.65 billion. As a group, analysts forecast that Johnson & Johnson will post 10.58 earnings per share for the current year.

Johnson & Johnson Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, June 10th. Investors of record on Tuesday, May 27th will be given a $1.30 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, May 27th. This represents a $5.20 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.33%. This is a positive change from Johnson & Johnson's previous quarterly dividend of $1.24. Johnson & Johnson's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 57.84%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Johnson & Johnson

In other news, VP Robert J. Decker sold 6,999 shares of Johnson & Johnson stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $165.88, for a total transaction of $1,160,994.12. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now directly owns 21,001 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,483,645.88. This trade represents a 25.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, EVP Timothy Schmid sold 403 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $156.15, for a total transaction of $62,928.45. Following the completion of 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 position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 0.16% of the company's stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Johnson & Johnson

A number of institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. IFS Advisors LLC increased its position in Johnson & Johnson by 138.9% during the 4th quarter. IFS Advisors LLC now owns 172 shares of the company's stock valued at $25,000 after purchasing an additional 100 shares during the period. WealthTrak Capital Management LLC purchased a new stake in Johnson & Johnson during the fourth quarter worth $26,000. Mountain Hill Investment Partners Corp. purchased a new position in shares of Johnson & Johnson in the 4th quarter valued at $29,000. Bay Harbor Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Johnson & Johnson in the 4th quarter worth $32,000. Finally, Conquis Financial LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Johnson & Johnson during the 4th quarter worth $33,000. 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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