Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ) Price Target Cut to $175.00

Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ - Free Report) had its price objective lowered by Royal Bank of Canada from $181.00 to $175.00 in a report published on Wednesday, Benzinga reports. The firm currently has an outperform rating on the stock.

A number of other brokerages also recently commented on JNJ. Cantor Fitzgerald reaffirmed an overweight rating and issued a $215.00 price target on shares of Johnson & Johnson in a report on Monday. Raymond James increased their price target on shares of Johnson & Johnson from $172.00 to $175.00 and gave the company an outperform rating in a report on Wednesday, January 3rd. StockNews.com raised shares of Johnson & Johnson from a buy rating to a strong-buy rating in a report on Tuesday, February 6th. Finally, Morgan Stanley lowered their price target on shares of Johnson & Johnson from $170.00 to $169.00 and set an equal weight rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, January 24th. Eight research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, five have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of Moderate Buy and a consensus price target of $176.36.

Johnson & Johnson Price Performance

Shares of JNJ traded up $0.32 during midday trading on Wednesday, hitting $144.77. 9,302,952 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 7,218,796. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $156.80 and a 200-day moving average of $155.82. Johnson & Johnson has a 52 week low of $143.39 and a 52 week high of $175.97. The stock has a market cap of $348.86 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.48, a PEG ratio of 2.45 and a beta of 0.53. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.38, a quick ratio of 0.91 and a current ratio of 1.16.

Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, April 16th. The company reported $2.71 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.64 by $0.07. Johnson & Johnson had a net margin of 37.79% and a return on equity of 37.27%. The business had revenue of $21.38 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $21.39 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $2.68 EPS. The business's revenue was up 2.3% on a year-over-year basis. On average, analysts forecast that Johnson & Johnson will post 10.66 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Johnson & Johnson Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, June 4th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, May 21st will be given a dividend of $1.24 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, May 20th. This is a positive change from Johnson & Johnson's previous quarterly dividend of $1.19. This represents a $4.96 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.43%. Johnson & Johnson's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 34.47%.

Insider Transactions at Johnson & Johnson

In other news, major shareholder & Johnson Johnson sold 3,725 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $25.81, for a total transaction of $96,142.25. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 4,099,575 shares of the company's stock, valued at $105,810,030.75. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. In related news, EVP Jennifer L. Taubert sold 59,397 shares of Johnson & Johnson stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $156.27, for a total transaction of $9,281,969.19. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 141,416 shares of the company's stock, valued at $22,099,078.32. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, major shareholder & Johnson Johnson sold 3,725 shares of Johnson & Johnson stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $25.81, for a total transaction of $96,142.25. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 4,099,575 shares in the company, valued at $105,810,030.75. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 0.16% of the company's stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Johnson & Johnson

Several institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of JNJ. 4J Wealth Management LLC grew its holdings in Johnson & Johnson by 2.2% in the fourth quarter. 4J Wealth Management LLC now owns 2,835 shares of the company's stock worth $444,000 after purchasing an additional 62 shares during the last quarter. My Personal CFO LLC grew its holdings in Johnson & Johnson by 1.4% in the fourth quarter. My Personal CFO LLC now owns 4,550 shares of the company's stock worth $713,000 after purchasing an additional 62 shares during the last quarter. Eagle Strategies LLC grew its holdings in Johnson & Johnson by 1.8% in the fourth quarter. Eagle Strategies LLC now owns 3,589 shares of the company's stock worth $563,000 after purchasing an additional 63 shares during the last quarter. Clearview Wealth Advisors LLC grew its holdings in Johnson & Johnson by 1.5% in the fourth quarter. Clearview Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 4,373 shares of the company's stock worth $685,000 after purchasing an additional 64 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Brookmont Capital Management grew its holdings in Johnson & Johnson by 0.4% in the fourth quarter. Brookmont Capital Management now owns 14,852 shares of the company's stock worth $2,328,000 after purchasing an additional 64 shares during the last quarter. 69.55% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Johnson & Johnson

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.