Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ) Declares $1.24 Quarterly Dividend

Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ) declared a quarterly dividend on Thursday, January 2nd,RTT News reports. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, February 18th will be paid a dividend of 1.24 per share on Tuesday, March 4th. This represents a $4.96 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.44%.

Johnson & Johnson has raised its dividend by an average of 5.7% annually over the last three years and has increased its dividend annually for the last 63 consecutive years. Johnson & Johnson has a dividend payout ratio of 46.9% meaning its dividend is sufficiently covered by earnings. Analysts expect Johnson & Johnson to earn $10.55 per share next year, which means the company should continue to be able to cover its $4.96 annual dividend with an expected future payout ratio of 47.0%.

Johnson & Johnson Stock Performance

JNJ stock opened at $144.02 on Friday. Johnson & Johnson has a 1-year low of $142.75 and a 1-year high of $168.85. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $152.12 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $156.23. The firm has a market cap of $346.75 billion, a PE ratio of 20.84, a P/E/G ratio of 2.52 and a beta of 0.51. The company has a current ratio of 1.03, a quick ratio of 0.79 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.45.

Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, October 15th. The company reported $2.42 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.21 by $0.21. The business had revenue of $22.47 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $22.17 billion. Johnson & Johnson had a return on equity of 35.45% and a net margin of 19.14%. Johnson & Johnson’s revenue for the quarter was up 5.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $2.66 EPS. As a group, research analysts forecast that Johnson & Johnson will post 9.94 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Johnson & Johnson

In other Johnson & Johnson news, Director Mark A. Weinberger bought 1,000 shares of Johnson & Johnson stock in a transaction dated Thursday, December 12th. The stock was bought at an average cost of $147.22 per share, for a total transaction of $147,220.00. Following the purchase, the director now owns 1,000 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $147,220. The trade was a ∞ increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 0.16% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

JNJ has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. Morgan Stanley raised their price objective on shares of Johnson & Johnson from $169.00 to $175.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 16th. Citigroup cut their price target on Johnson & Johnson from $185.00 to $175.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, December 11th. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price objective on Johnson & Johnson from $163.00 to $166.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 16th. Guggenheim boosted their target price on Johnson & Johnson from $156.00 to $162.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, November 6th. Finally, StockNews.com raised shares of Johnson & Johnson from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Saturday, September 14th. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seven have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $174.73.

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.