Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ) Shares Up 1.6% – Time to Buy?

Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ)’s stock price was up 1.6% on Friday . The stock traded as high as $263.71 and last traded at $263.43. Approximately 6,332,560 shares traded hands during trading, a decline of 25% from the average daily volume of 8,427,021 shares. The stock had previously closed at $259.27.

Key Johnson & Johnson News

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

• Positive Sentiment: Analysts highlighted that JNJ raised its outlook, with guidance upgrades adding to investor confidence after the company’s recent earnings beat. Q2 Earnings: Guidance Upgrades Push These 3 Stocks Higher
• Positive Sentiment: JNJ’s Innovative Medicine unit reported strong Q2 growth, helping show resilience even after Stelara patent loss and suggesting momentum can continue into the second half of 2026. J&J’s Innovative Medicine Unit Proves Its Resilience in Q2
• Positive Sentiment: Positive topline Phase 3 data for TECVAYLI and TALVEY showed large reductions in disease progression and death risk in relapsed/refractory multiple myeloma, strengthening JNJ’s oncology pipeline. TECVAYLI® + TALVEY® reduced the risk of disease progression or death by 89% and the risk of death by 62% in earlier-line relapsed/refractory multiple myeloma
• Positive Sentiment: JNJ also received FDA De Novo authorization for its OTTAVA robotic surgical system, expanding its competitiveness in soft-tissue robotic surgery and broadening a potentially important growth platform. Should FDA’s De Novo Nod for OTTAVA Robotic System Require Action From Johnson & Johnson (JNJ) Investors?
• Neutral Sentiment: Several articles framed JNJ as a defensive dividend stock and a steady healthcare holding, which reinforces its safe-haven appeal but is less likely to move the shares on its own. 3 Dividend Stocks Baby Boomers Should Own for the Rest of Their Lives
• Neutral Sentiment: Commentary on JNJ’s steadiness during market volatility and ETF exposure after earnings mainly reflects investor interest in the stock rather than a new fundamental change. ETFs to Buy Post JNJ’s Q2 Earnings Beat & Bullish 2026 Outlook

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research firms have recently commented on JNJ. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price target on shares of Johnson & Johnson from $250.00 to $260.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, April 15th. Argus lifted their price objective on shares of Johnson & Johnson from $240.00 to $275.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, April 16th. 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. Daiwa Securities Group raised their target price on shares of Johnson & Johnson from $237.00 to $246.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, April 16th. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada lifted their price target on shares of Johnson & Johnson from $265.00 to $287.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, July 13th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eighteen have assigned a Buy rating and six have issued a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Johnson & Johnson currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $265.30.

Johnson & Johnson Trading Up 1.6%

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.46, a quick ratio of 0.77 and a current ratio of 1.03. The company has a market capitalization of $634.13 billion, a P/E ratio of 30.52, a PEG ratio of 2.50 and a beta of 0.24. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $242.71 and its 200-day simple moving average is $236.32.

Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 15th. The company reported $2.90 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.84 by $0.06. Johnson & Johnson had a net margin of 21.48% and a return on equity of 32.86%. The business had revenue of $25.31 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $25.06 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $2.77 EPS. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 6.6% compared to the same quarter last year. Johnson & Johnson has set its FY 2026 guidance at 11.600-11.750 EPS. Research analysts predict that Johnson & Johnson will post 11.68 earnings per share for the current year.

Johnson & Johnson Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 8th. Investors of record on Tuesday, August 25th will be paid 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 2.0%. Johnson & Johnson’s payout ratio is 62.11%.

Insider Transactions at Johnson & Johnson

In other Johnson & Johnson news, EVP Kathryn E. Wengel sold 10,000 shares of the stock in a transaction 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 sale, the executive vice president owned 114,288 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $27,560,551.20. This trade represents a 8.05% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Company insiders own 0.16% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Johnson & Johnson

A number of hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in JNJ. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its holdings in Johnson & Johnson by 1.6% in the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 240,349,660 shares of the company’s stock worth $49,740,362,000 after purchasing an additional 3,731,074 shares in the last quarter. State Street Corp boosted its holdings in shares of Johnson & Johnson by 1.3% in the 4th quarter. State Street Corp now owns 133,869,843 shares of the company’s stock valued at $27,704,364,000 after buying an additional 1,663,782 shares in the last quarter. Auto Owners Insurance Co grew 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 buying an additional 69,108,368 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC raised its stake in shares of Johnson & Johnson by 3.1% during the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 57,953,747 shares of the company’s stock worth $11,967,947,000 after acquiring an additional 1,738,292 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Norges Bank bought a new position in shares of Johnson & Johnson during the 4th quarter worth approximately $6,924,523,000. 69.55% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Johnson & Johnson Company Profile

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.