Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ) Trading Up 0.2%

Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ - Get Free Report)'s stock price traded up 0.2% on Tuesday . The stock traded as high as $152.21 and last traded at $151.45. 3,368,109 shares changed hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 54% from the average session volume of 7,349,942 shares. The stock had previously closed at $151.22.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms have issued reports on JNJ. Royal Bank of Canada dropped their price target on shares of Johnson & Johnson from $181.00 to $175.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, April 17th. HSBC raised Johnson & Johnson from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and boosted their price target for the stock from $169.00 to $170.00 in a research report on Thursday, April 18th. StockNews.com raised Johnson & Johnson from a "buy" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Tuesday, February 6th. Cantor Fitzgerald reaffirmed an "overweight" rating and set a $215.00 price objective on shares of Johnson & Johnson in a research report on Monday, May 6th. Finally, Morgan Stanley lowered their price target on shares of Johnson & Johnson from $168.00 to $167.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, April 17th. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, six have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $175.86.

Johnson & Johnson Trading Up 0.1 %

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.36, a current ratio of 1.17 and a quick ratio of 0.94. The firm's fifty day moving average is $152.80 and its 200-day moving average is $154.95. The firm has a market cap of $364.28 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 9.44, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.47 and a beta of 0.55.

Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, April 16th. The company reported $2.71 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.64 by $0.07. The business had revenue of $21.38 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $21.39 billion. Johnson & Johnson had a return on equity of 36.70% and a net margin of 45.26%. The firm's revenue was up 2.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $2.68 earnings per share. Equities analysts anticipate that Johnson & Johnson will post 10.64 earnings per share for the current year.

Johnson & Johnson Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, June 4th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, May 21st will be issued a dividend of $1.24 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, May 20th. This represents a $4.96 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.28%. This is a positive change from Johnson & Johnson's previous quarterly dividend of $1.19. Johnson & Johnson's dividend payout ratio is currently 29.68%.

Insider Activity at Johnson & Johnson

In related news, major shareholder & Johnson Johnson sold 3,725 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, February 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $25.81, for a total value of $96,142.25. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 4,099,575 shares in the company, valued at approximately $105,810,030.75. The sale 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 corporate insiders.

Institutional Trading of Johnson & Johnson

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in shares of Johnson & Johnson during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $4,071,642,000. Wellington Management Group LLP lifted its position in shares of Johnson & Johnson by 16.4% during the fourth quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 24,019,725 shares of the company's stock worth $3,764,852,000 after acquiring an additional 3,391,657 shares in the last quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC grew its position in shares of Johnson & Johnson by 7,875.8% in the fourth quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 2,090,384 shares of the company's stock valued at $327,647,000 after purchasing an additional 2,064,175 shares in the last quarter. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC bought a new stake in shares of Johnson & Johnson during the 4th quarter valued at $193,050,000. Finally, Focused Investors Fund L P purchased a new position in Johnson & Johnson during the 1st quarter valued at about $193,996,000. 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.