Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ) Hits New 12-Month High After Analyst Upgrade

Key Points

• UBS raised its price target to $320 and maintained a Buy rating, sending Johnson & Johnson shares to a new 52-week high of $281.07. Analysts overall rate the stock “Moderate Buy,” with a consensus target of $272.83.
• Johnson & Johnson reported quarterly EPS of $2.90, beating estimates of $2.84, while revenue increased 6.6% year over year to $25.31 billion. The company reaffirmed fiscal 2026 EPS guidance of $11.60–$11.75.
• The company declared a quarterly dividend of $1.34, equivalent to an annualized $5.36 payout and a 1.9% yield, while recent insider share sales and ongoing talc litigation remain potential risks for investors.

Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ - Get Free Report) reached a new 52-week high on Wednesday after UBS Group raised their price target on the stock from $280.00 to $320.00. UBS Group currently has a buy rating on the stock. Johnson & Johnson traded as high as $281.07 and last traded at $278.8010, with a volume of 1322509 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at $271.19.

A number of other equities analysts have also recently commented on JNJ. Guggenheim lifted their price target on Johnson & Johnson from $270.00 to $287.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, August 6th. Raymond James Financial set a $280.00 target price on shares of Johnson & Johnson in a report on Monday, August 3rd. HSBC set a $290.00 price target on shares of Johnson & Johnson and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Monday, July 6th. Weiss Ratings raised shares of Johnson & Johnson from a "buy (b-)" rating to a "buy (b)" rating in a research report on Friday, July 24th. Finally, Citigroup boosted their price objective on shares of Johnson & Johnson from $285.00 to $298.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 8th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eighteen have given a Buy rating and six have issued a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $272.83.

Insider Activity at Johnson & Johnson

In other Johnson & Johnson news, EVP Kathryn E. Wengel sold 10,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, June 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $241.15, for a total transaction of $2,411,500.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president owned 114,288 shares in the company, valued at approximately $27,560,551.20. This represents a 8.05% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, EVP Elizabeth Forminard sold 15,918 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, August 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $257.00, for a total value of $4,090,926.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 16,994 shares of the company's stock, valued at $4,367,458. This represents a 48.37% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 63,972 shares of company stock valued at $16,245,605. 0.16% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Key Stories Impacting Johnson & Johnson

Here are the key news stories impacting Johnson & Johnson this week:

• Positive Sentiment: UBS raises price target and rating: UBS lifted its price target for Johnson & Johnson from $280 to $320 and upgraded the stock to “Buy.” The new target implies approximately 15.1% upside from the referenced price, providing the clearest positive catalyst for the move.
• Positive Sentiment: New products are replacing lost sales: Recent analysis says J&J replaced about $913 million in lost revenue with approximately $2.4 billion in new sales. This supports the company’s ability to offset product erosion and maintain growth, although the analysis notes that less than half of the new sales translated into retained value or earnings. Johnson & Johnson Replaced $913 Million In Lost Sales With $2.4 Billion In New Ones
• Neutral Sentiment: Upcoming earnings event: J&J will hold its third-quarter results conference call on October 13, giving investors a future catalyst to assess sales growth, pharmaceutical performance and full-year guidance. Johnson & Johnson to Host Investor Conference Call on Third-Quarter Results
• Neutral Sentiment: Dividend comparison: Commentary portrays Procter & Gamble’s dividend profile as more dependable than J&J’s growth story and raises questions about whether a potential corporate event could affect J&J’s long-running payout record. Why Procter & Gamble’s Quieter Dividend Outpaces Johnson & Johnson’s Growth Story
• Negative Sentiment: Talc litigation remains a risk: A recent report questions whether a talc verdict adds to J&J’s legal exposure, keeping settlement costs, liabilities and uncertainty over future litigation as potential overhangs. Does Johnson & Johnson Talc Verdict Add To Its Legal Risk?

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. California State Teachers Retirement System boosted its holdings in Johnson & Johnson by 25,103.8% in the second quarter. California State Teachers Retirement System now owns 943,488,645 shares of the company's stock worth $239,617,811,000 after acquiring an additional 939,745,213 shares in the last quarter. State Street Corp increased its holdings in shares of Johnson & Johnson by 1.3% during the fourth quarter. State Street Corp now owns 133,869,843 shares of the company's stock valued at $27,704,364,000 after acquiring an additional 1,663,782 shares in the last quarter. Auto Owners Insurance Co raised its position in shares of Johnson & Johnson by 22,225.6% in the 4th quarter. Auto Owners Insurance Co now owns 69,419,308 shares of the company's stock worth $1,436,633,000 after purchasing an additional 69,108,368 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its stake in Johnson & Johnson by 3.1% in the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 57,953,747 shares of the company's stock worth $11,967,947,000 after purchasing an additional 1,738,292 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Norges Bank purchased a new stake in Johnson & Johnson during the 4th quarter valued at about $6,924,523,000. 69.55% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Johnson & Johnson Stock Performance

The company has a current ratio of 1.09, a quick ratio of 0.81 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.44. The firm has a market capitalization of $663.98 billion, a P/E ratio of 31.93, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.54 and a beta of 0.24. The business's 50 day simple moving average is $260.21 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $244.39.

Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 15th. The company reported $2.90 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $2.84 by $0.06. Johnson & Johnson had a net margin of 21.48% and a return on equity of 32.42%. The firm had revenue of $25.31 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $25.06 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $2.77 earnings per share. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 6.6% on a year-over-year basis. Johnson & Johnson has set its FY 2026 guidance at 11.600-11.750 EPS. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Johnson & Johnson will post 11.61 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Johnson & Johnson Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 8th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, August 25th will be given a $1.34 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, August 25th. This represents a $5.36 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.9%. Johnson & Johnson's payout ratio is 62.11%.

About Johnson & Johnson

Johnson & Johnson is a multinational healthcare company headquartered in New Brunswick, New Jersey, that develops, manufactures and markets a broad range of products across pharmaceuticals, medical devices and previously consumer health. Founded in 1886 by the Johnson family, the company has grown into a global healthcare organization with operations and sales in many countries around the world.

The company's pharmaceuticals business, organized largely under its Janssen research and development organization, focuses on prescription medicines across therapeutic areas such as immunology, infectious disease, oncology and neuroscience.

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