Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ) Shares Up 0.6% - Time to Buy?

Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ - Get Free Report) was up 0.6% during trading on Thursday . The company traded as high as $156.63 and last traded at $155.40. Approximately 4,140,444 shares changed hands during trading, a decline of 41% from the average daily volume of 7,057,054 shares. The stock had previously closed at $154.52.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts recently issued reports on the stock. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Johnson & Johnson from a "buy" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Saturday, September 14th. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price objective on shares of Johnson & Johnson from $163.00 to $166.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 16th. Citigroup raised their target price on Johnson & Johnson from $180.00 to $185.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 16th. Morgan Stanley upped their price target on Johnson & Johnson from $169.00 to $175.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a report on Wednesday, October 16th. Finally, Guggenheim raised their price objective on Johnson & Johnson from $156.00 to $162.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a report on Wednesday, November 6th. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Johnson & Johnson has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $175.94.

Johnson & Johnson Stock Up 0.6 %

The stock has a market capitalization of $374.14 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.49, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.77 and a beta of 0.53. The company has a quick ratio of 0.79, a current ratio of 1.03 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.45. The business's 50-day moving average is $159.33 and its two-hundred day moving average is $156.38.

Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, October 15th. The company reported $2.42 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.21 by $0.21. Johnson & Johnson had a return on equity of 35.45% and a net margin of 19.14%. The business had revenue of $22.47 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $22.17 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $2.66 EPS. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 5.2% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities analysts anticipate that Johnson & Johnson will post 9.93 EPS for the current year.

Johnson & Johnson Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 10th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, November 26th will be issued a dividend of $1.24 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, November 26th. This represents a $4.96 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.19%. Johnson & Johnson's dividend payout ratio is presently 71.78%.

Insider Activity at Johnson & Johnson

In other Johnson & Johnson news, VP Robert J. Decker sold 5,635 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $165.06, for a total value of $930,113.10. Following the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 18,973 shares in the company, valued at $3,131,683.38. The trade was a 22.90 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. 0.16% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Trading of Johnson & Johnson

Institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Vinva Investment Management Ltd lifted its stake in shares of Johnson & Johnson by 6.8% in the 3rd quarter. Vinva Investment Management Ltd now owns 111,448 shares of the company's stock valued at $17,988,000 after purchasing an additional 7,110 shares during the last quarter. Financial Counselors Inc. lifted its position in Johnson & Johnson by 5.3% in the third quarter. Financial Counselors Inc. now owns 185,093 shares of the company's stock valued at $29,996,000 after buying an additional 9,309 shares during the last quarter. Meridian Financial Partners LLC purchased a new position in Johnson & Johnson during the second quarter worth about $1,626,000. Meridian Investment Counsel Inc. raised its stake in shares of Johnson & Johnson by 19.6% in the 3rd quarter. Meridian Investment Counsel Inc. now owns 22,629 shares of the company's stock valued at $3,667,000 after acquiring an additional 3,710 shares during the period. Finally, Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Johnson & Johnson by 0.6% in the 3rd quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 17,639,368 shares of the company's stock worth $2,858,543,000 after acquiring an additional 102,502 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 69.55% of the company's stock.

Johnson & Johnson Company Profile

Johnson & Johnson, together with its subsidiaries, researches, develops, manufactures, and sells various products in the healthcare field worldwide. The company's Innovative Medicine segment offers products for various therapeutic areas, such as immunology, including rheumatoid arthritis, psoriatic arthritis, inflammatory bowel disease, and psoriasis; infectious diseases comprising HIV/AIDS; neuroscience, consisting of mood disorders, neurodegenerative disorders, and schizophrenia; oncology, such as prostate cancer, hematologic malignancies, lung cancer, and bladder cancer; cardiovascular and metabolism, including thrombosis, diabetes, and macular degeneration; and pulmonary hypertension comprising pulmonary arterial hypertension through retailers, wholesalers, distributors, hospitals, and healthcare professionals for prescription use.