Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ) Shares Down 0.1% – Here’s Why

Shares of Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ) were down 0.1% during mid-day trading on Friday . The company traded as low as $162.93 and last traded at $163.56. Approximately 1,598,445 shares traded hands during trading, a decline of 82% from the average daily volume of 9,030,384 shares. The stock had previously closed at $163.73.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts have recently commented on JNJ shares. Barclays lifted their price objective on Johnson & Johnson from $159.00 to $166.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 28th. Morgan Stanley dropped their price target on Johnson & Johnson from $175.00 to $163.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, January 23rd. Leerink Partners reduced their price objective on Johnson & Johnson from $182.00 to $169.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, January 23rd. Bank of America dropped their target price on shares of Johnson & Johnson from $160.00 to $159.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, January 23rd. Finally, Raymond James reduced their price target on shares of Johnson & Johnson from $170.00 to $165.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, January 23rd. Nine analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have given a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Johnson & Johnson presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $170.67.

Johnson & Johnson Stock Up 0.9 %

The company has a market capitalization of $397.81 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 24.85, a P/E/G ratio of 2.56 and a beta of 0.52. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $150.90 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $156.04. 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 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.99 by $0.05. Johnson & Johnson had a return on equity of 34.24% and a net margin of 18.20%. The business had revenue of $22.52 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $22.44 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $2.29 EPS. Johnson & Johnson’s quarterly revenue was up 5.3% on a year-over-year basis. Equities analysts expect that Johnson & Johnson will post 10.58 EPS for the current 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 given a dividend of $1.24 per share. This represents a $4.96 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.00%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, February 18th. Johnson & Johnson’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 74.59%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Johnson & Johnson

In related news, EVP Timothy Schmid sold 403 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $156.15, for a total transaction of $62,928.45. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 15,098 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,357,552.70. This trade represents a 2.60 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, VP Robert J. Decker sold 6,999 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $165.88, for a total value of $1,160,994.12. Following the sale, the vice president now owns 21,001 shares in the company, valued at $3,483,645.88. The trade was a 25.00 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 0.16% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in JNJ. BridgePort Financial Solutions LLC acquired a new position in shares of Johnson & Johnson during the fourth quarter worth approximately $412,000. Park Square Financial Group LLC bought a new position in Johnson & Johnson in the 4th quarter worth approximately $331,000. Total Wealth Planning & Management Inc. acquired a new position in Johnson & Johnson during the 4th quarter worth $628,000. Menard Financial Group LLC boosted its position in Johnson & Johnson by 11.1% in the 4th quarter. Menard Financial Group LLC now owns 1,866 shares of the company’s stock valued at $270,000 after buying an additional 187 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Universal Beteiligungs und Servicegesellschaft mbH acquired a new stake in shares of Johnson & Johnson in the 4th quarter valued at $349,206,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 69.55% of the company’s stock.

About Johnson & Johnson

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.