Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ) Trading 1.3% Higher – Still a Buy?

Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ) shares were up 1.3% on Thursday . The stock traded as high as $270.87 and last traded at $270.6490. 6,369,280 shares traded hands during trading, a decline of 21% from the average session volume of 8,014,441 shares. The stock had previously closed at $267.28.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages have recently commented on JNJ. Scotiabank restated an “outperform” rating and issued a $305.00 target price on shares of Johnson & Johnson in a research report on Thursday, July 16th. Weiss Ratings upgraded shares of Johnson & Johnson from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “buy (b)” rating in a research report on Friday, July 24th. Freedom Capital raised shares of Johnson & Johnson from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, July 16th. Stifel Nicolaus set a $260.00 price objective on shares of Johnson & Johnson in a research report on Wednesday, July 15th. Finally, Morgan Stanley upped their target price on Johnson & Johnson from $284.00 to $294.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, July 16th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eighteen have given a Buy rating and six have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Johnson & Johnson currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $274.13.

Johnson & Johnson Stock Performance

The firm has a market capitalization of $652.24 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 31.36, a PEG ratio of 2.55 and a beta of 0.24. The company has a current ratio of 1.09, a quick ratio of 0.81 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.44. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $263.25 and its 200-day moving average is $246.40.

Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, July 15th. The company reported $2.90 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.84 by $0.06. The firm had revenue of $25.31 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $25.06 billion. Johnson & Johnson had a net margin of 21.48% and a return on equity of 32.42%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 6.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $2.77 earnings per share. Johnson & Johnson has set its FY 2026 guidance at 11.600-11.750 EPS. On average, analysts predict that Johnson & Johnson will post 11.61 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Johnson & Johnson Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, September 8th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, August 25th were issued a $1.34 dividend. This represents a $5.36 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.0%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, August 25th. Johnson & Johnson’s dividend payout ratio is presently 62.11%.

Insider Transactions at Johnson & Johnson

In other news, EVP Timothy Schmid sold 33,597 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, September 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $274.74, for a total value of $9,230,439.78. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president owned 25,447 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $6,991,308.78. This represents a 56.90% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Vanessa Broadhurst sold 23,054 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, July 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $251.27, for a total transaction of $5,792,778.58. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president owned 23,003 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $5,779,963.81. This trade represents a 50.06% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders have sold a total of 87,569 shares of company stock valued at $23,064,544 over the last three months. Company insiders own 0.16% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Johnson & Johnson

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Outlook Capital Management LLC acquired a new position in Johnson & Johnson during the 2nd quarter worth about $28,000. Blueline Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Johnson & Johnson in the fourth quarter valued at about $25,000. Matrix Trust Co raised its position in shares of Johnson & Johnson by 56.2% during the second quarter. Matrix Trust Co now owns 150 shares of the company’s stock worth $38,000 after acquiring an additional 54 shares during the last quarter. Montgomery Financial Services LLC acquired a new position in shares of Johnson & Johnson in the second quarter worth approximately $43,000. Finally, MidAtlantic Capital Management Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Johnson & Johnson in the fourth quarter worth approximately $37,000. 69.55% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Johnson & Johnson Company Profile

Johnson & Johnson (NYSE: JNJ) is a global healthcare company that develops, manufactures and markets pharmaceutical and medical device products. Founded in 1886 and headquartered in New Brunswick, New Jersey, the company serves patients, healthcare professionals and institutions in markets around the world.

Johnson & Johnson operates through two primary business segments: Innovative Medicine and MedTech. Innovative Medicine focuses on prescription treatments in areas including immunology, oncology, neuroscience, cardiovascular and metabolic disease, infectious diseases, and pulmonary hypertension.