Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ) Receives Outperform Rating from Royal Bank of Canada

Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ)‘s stock had its “outperform” rating restated by research analysts at Royal Bank of Canada in a report issued on Wednesday,Benzinga reports. They currently have a $181.00 price target on the stock. Royal Bank of Canada’s price target suggests a potential upside of 15.08% from the stock’s current price.

A number of other equities analysts have also weighed in on JNJ. Morgan Stanley cut their target price on shares of Johnson & Johnson from $175.00 to $163.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, January 23rd. Guggenheim upped their target price on Johnson & Johnson from $162.00 to $166.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price objective on shares of Johnson & Johnson from $166.00 to $152.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, January 23rd. Barclays increased their price target on shares of Johnson & Johnson from $159.00 to $166.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Tuesday, January 28th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus lowered their price target on Johnson & Johnson from $170.00 to $155.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, January 23rd. Nine research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have assigned a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $170.67.

Johnson & Johnson Trading Up 1.5 %

NYSE JNJ traded up $2.29 on Wednesday, hitting $157.28. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 1,395,758 shares, compared to its average volume of 8,804,933. The company’s 50-day moving average is $148.12 and its 200 day moving average is $155.85. 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 $378.68 billion, a PE ratio of 23.66, a PEG ratio of 2.50 and a beta of 0.52. The company has a quick ratio of 0.86, a current ratio of 1.11 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.43.

Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, January 22nd. The company reported $2.04 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.99 by $0.05. The business had revenue of $22.52 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $22.44 billion. Johnson & Johnson had a net margin of 18.20% and a return on equity of 34.24%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 5.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $2.29 EPS. As a group, analysts predict that Johnson & Johnson will post 10.58 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Transactions at Johnson & Johnson

In related news, EVP Timothy Schmid sold 403 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $156.15, for a total transaction of $62,928.45. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 15,098 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,357,552.70. The trade was a 2.60 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, Director Mark A. Weinberger acquired 1,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, December 12th. The shares were bought at an average cost of $147.22 per share, for a total transaction of $147,220.00. Following the purchase, the director now directly owns 1,000 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $147,220. The trade was a ∞ increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Corporate insiders own 0.16% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Johnson & Johnson

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of JNJ. AMF Tjanstepension AB raised its holdings in shares of Johnson & Johnson by 14.2% in the third quarter. AMF Tjanstepension AB now owns 425,261 shares of the company’s stock worth $68,985,000 after acquiring an additional 52,997 shares during the last quarter. Alpha Financial Partners LLC purchased a new stake in Johnson & Johnson during the third quarter valued at about $209,000. Wealth Group Ltd. purchased a new stake in Johnson & Johnson during the 3rd quarter worth $213,000. Swedbank AB lifted its position in Johnson & Johnson by 5.3% during the 3rd quarter. Swedbank AB now owns 2,215,108 shares of the company’s stock worth $358,980,000 after acquiring an additional 111,570 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Foundations Investment Advisors LLC raised its stake in shares of Johnson & Johnson by 21.4% in the 3rd quarter. Foundations Investment Advisors LLC now owns 15,749 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,552,000 after purchasing an additional 2,773 shares in the last quarter. 69.55% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Johnson & Johnson Company Profile

Johnson & Johnson is a holding company, which engages in the research, development, manufacture, and sale of products in the healthcare field. It operates through the Innovative Medicine and MedTech segments. The Innovative Medicine segment focuses on immunology, infectious diseases, neuroscience, oncology, cardiovascular and metabolism, and pulmonary hypertension.