Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ) Shares Bought by River Global Investors LLP

River Global Investors LLP boosted its position in Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ - Free Report) by 691.5% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 38,492 shares of the company's stock after acquiring an additional 33,629 shares during the period. Johnson & Johnson accounts for 1.1% of River Global Investors LLP's portfolio, making the stock its 18th largest position. River Global Investors LLP's holdings in Johnson & Johnson were worth $6,034,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Massachusetts Wealth Management grew its holdings in shares of Johnson & Johnson by 4.2% in the 3rd quarter. Massachusetts Wealth Management now owns 16,105 shares of the company's stock valued at $2,508,000 after buying an additional 650 shares during the period. Aua Capital Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of Johnson & Johnson by 22.8% in the third quarter. Aua Capital Management LLC now owns 2,515 shares of the company's stock worth $392,000 after acquiring an additional 467 shares in the last quarter. Litman Gregory Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Johnson & Johnson during the third quarter worth about $587,000. Barrett & Company Inc. grew its position in shares of Johnson & Johnson by 4.8% in the 3rd quarter. Barrett & Company Inc. now owns 10,230 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,593,000 after purchasing an additional 464 shares during the period. Finally, BetterWealth LLC raised its holdings in Johnson & Johnson by 16.1% during the 3rd quarter. BetterWealth LLC now owns 2,169 shares of the company's stock worth $338,000 after buying an additional 300 shares during the period. 69.55% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several brokerages have recently issued reports on JNJ. Royal Bank of Canada lowered their price objective on shares of Johnson & Johnson from $181.00 to $175.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, April 17th. Cantor Fitzgerald restated an "overweight" rating and issued a $215.00 price target on shares of Johnson & Johnson in a report on Monday. Morgan Stanley decreased their price objective on Johnson & Johnson from $168.00 to $167.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, April 17th. HSBC raised shares of Johnson & Johnson from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and boosted their price objective for the company from $169.00 to $170.00 in a report on Thursday, April 18th. Finally, Bank of America dropped their price target on shares of Johnson & Johnson from $180.00 to $170.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, April 17th. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, six have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $175.86.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, major shareholder & Johnson Johnson sold 3,725 shares of the stock in a transaction 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 legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. In other Johnson & Johnson news, major shareholder & Johnson Johnson sold 3,725 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred 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 owns 4,099,575 shares in the company, valued at $105,810,030.75. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Jennifer L. Taubert sold 59,397 shares of Johnson & Johnson stock in a transaction 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 completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 141,416 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $22,099,078.32. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.16% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Johnson & Johnson Trading Up 0.6 %

NYSE JNJ traded up $0.90 on Thursday, reaching $149.85. The company had a trading volume of 6,376,387 shares, compared to its average volume of 7,433,526. The business has a 50 day moving average of $153.45 and a two-hundred day moving average of $154.93. 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 has a market cap of $360.64 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 9.34, a P/E/G ratio of 2.46 and a beta of 0.55. Johnson & Johnson has a fifty-two week low of $143.13 and a fifty-two week high of $175.97.

Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, April 16th. The company reported $2.71 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $2.64 by $0.07. Johnson & Johnson had a net margin of 45.26% and a return on equity of 36.70%. 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 posted $2.68 EPS. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 2.3% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts forecast that Johnson & Johnson will post 10.65 EPS for the current year.

Johnson & Johnson Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, June 4th. Investors of record on Tuesday, May 21st will be given a dividend of $1.24 per share. This is a positive change from Johnson & Johnson's previous quarterly dividend of $1.19. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, May 20th. This represents a $4.96 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.31%. Johnson & Johnson's dividend payout ratio is presently 30.92%.

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.