Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ) Given Consensus Recommendation of “Hold” by Analysts

Shares of Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ) have received an average recommendation of “Hold” from the thirteen analysts that are presently covering the company, Marketbeat Ratings reports. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation and six have assigned a buy recommendation to the company. The average 1 year price objective among brokers that have covered the stock in the last year is $174.71.

Several brokerages have issued reports on JNJ. StockNews.com lowered shares of Johnson & Johnson from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 7th. Bank of America restated a “neutral” rating and issued a $166.00 price objective on shares of Johnson & Johnson in a report on Tuesday, December 10th. Wolfe Research began coverage on shares of Johnson & Johnson in a report on Friday, November 15th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $190.00 price objective for the company. Citigroup lowered their price objective on shares of Johnson & Johnson from $185.00 to $175.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, December 11th. Finally, Guggenheim boosted their price objective on shares of Johnson & Johnson from $156.00 to $162.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, November 6th.

Johnson & Johnson Trading Down 0.1 %

Shares of Johnson & Johnson stock opened at $142.07 on Friday. Johnson & Johnson has a 1 year low of $140.68 and a 1 year high of $168.85. The firm has a market cap of $342.05 billion, a PE ratio of 20.56, a PEG ratio of 2.52 and a beta of 0.51. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.45, a current ratio of 1.03 and a quick ratio of 0.79. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $149.67 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $156.05.

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

Johnson & Johnson Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, March 4th. Investors of record on Tuesday, February 18th will be paid a $1.24 dividend. This represents a $4.96 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.49%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, February 18th. Johnson & Johnson’s payout ratio is 71.78%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director Mark A. Weinberger acquired 1,000 shares of Johnson & Johnson stock in a transaction on Thursday, December 12th. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $147.22 per share, with a total value of $147,220.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 1,000 shares in the company, valued at $147,220. This trade represents a ∞ increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. 0.16% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Vinva Investment Management Ltd boosted its stake in Johnson & Johnson by 6.8% in the 3rd quarter. Vinva Investment Management Ltd now owns 111,448 shares of the company’s stock worth $17,988,000 after purchasing an additional 7,110 shares in the last quarter. Financial Counselors Inc. boosted its stake in Johnson & Johnson by 5.3% in the 3rd quarter. Financial Counselors Inc. now owns 185,093 shares of the company’s stock worth $29,996,000 after purchasing an additional 9,309 shares in the last quarter. Meridian Investment Counsel Inc. boosted its stake in Johnson & Johnson by 19.6% in the 3rd quarter. Meridian Investment Counsel Inc. now owns 22,629 shares of the company’s stock worth $3,667,000 after purchasing an additional 3,710 shares in the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. lifted its stake in Johnson & Johnson by 0.6% during the 3rd quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 17,639,368 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,858,543,000 after acquiring an additional 102,502 shares during the period. Finally, Lord Abbett & CO. LLC bought a new position in Johnson & Johnson during the 3rd quarter valued at about $69,859,000. 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.