New England Asset Management Inc. Reduces Stock Holdings in Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ)

New England Asset Management Inc. decreased its holdings in Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ - Free Report) by 10.9% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 56,139 shares of the company's stock after selling 6,850 shares during the period. Johnson & Johnson makes up about 1.4% of New England Asset Management Inc.'s portfolio, making the stock its 13th biggest position. New England Asset Management Inc.'s holdings in Johnson & Johnson were worth $8,119,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of JNJ. IFS Advisors LLC grew its holdings in shares of 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 last quarter. WealthTrak Capital Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Johnson & Johnson during the fourth quarter worth $26,000. Mountain Hill Investment Partners Corp. bought a new position in shares of Johnson & Johnson in the 4th quarter valued at $29,000. Bay Harbor Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Johnson & Johnson during the 4th quarter valued at $32,000. Finally, Conquis Financial LLC bought a new stake in Johnson & Johnson during the 4th quarter worth $33,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 69.55% of the company's stock.

Johnson & Johnson Stock Up 2.1%

Shares of Johnson & Johnson stock traded up $3.04 during trading on Thursday, reaching $149.40. 7,896,409 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 7,932,309. 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 firm has a market capitalization of $359.47 billion, a PE ratio of 22.47, a P/E/G ratio of 2.56 and a beta of 0.42. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $156.92 and a 200-day moving average price of $154.09. Johnson & Johnson has a 1-year low of $140.68 and a 1-year high of $169.99.

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

Johnson & Johnson Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, June 10th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, May 27th will be paid a $1.30 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, May 27th. This is an increase from Johnson & Johnson's previous quarterly dividend of $1.24. This represents a $5.20 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.48%. Johnson & Johnson's dividend payout ratio is 57.84%.

Insider Activity at Johnson & Johnson

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

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts have recently commented on the company. Benchmark raised Johnson & Johnson to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, April 24th. Leerink Partners lowered shares of Johnson & Johnson from an "outperform" rating to a "market perform" rating and reduced their target price for the stock from $169.00 to $153.00 in a report on Tuesday. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Johnson & Johnson from a "buy" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Saturday, January 25th. Wells Fargo & Company cut their price target on shares of Johnson & Johnson from $166.00 to $152.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, January 23rd. Finally, Leerink Partnrs lowered Johnson & Johnson from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Tuesday. Eleven analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seven have given a buy rating and three have issued a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $170.88.

Johnson & Johnson 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.