Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ) Shares Down 2.1% After Analyst Downgrade

Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ) traded down 2.1% during mid-day trading on Wednesday after Morgan Stanley lowered their price target on the stock from $168.00 to $167.00. Morgan Stanley currently has an equal weight rating on the stock. Johnson & Johnson traded as low as $143.39 and last traded at $144.45. 12,774,859 shares traded hands during trading, an increase of 95% from the average session volume of 6,557,295 shares. The stock had previously closed at $147.59.

A number of other brokerages also recently issued reports on JNJ. Cantor Fitzgerald reiterated an “overweight” rating and issued a $215.00 price target on shares of Johnson & Johnson in a report on Monday. Raymond James increased their price target on shares of Johnson & Johnson from $172.00 to $175.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 3rd. StockNews.com raised shares of Johnson & Johnson from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 6th. Bank of America lowered their target price on shares of Johnson & Johnson from $180.00 to $170.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada reduced their price target on Johnson & Johnson from $181.00 to $175.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, six have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Johnson & Johnson has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $175.86.

Insider Activity at Johnson & Johnson

In other Johnson & Johnson news, EVP Jennifer L. Taubert sold 59,397 shares of Johnson & Johnson stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $156.27, for a total transaction of $9,281,969.19. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 141,416 shares in the company, valued at approximately $22,099,078.32. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. In related news, major shareholder & Johnson Johnson sold 3,725 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, February 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $25.81, for a total value of $96,142.25. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 4,099,575 shares in the company, valued at approximately $105,810,030.75. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, EVP Jennifer L. Taubert sold 59,397 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, February 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $156.27, for a total transaction of $9,281,969.19. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 141,416 shares in the company, valued at approximately $22,099,078.32. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.16% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Johnson & Johnson

Several hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the company. Hibernia Wealth Partners LLC purchased a new position in shares of Johnson & Johnson during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Keener Financial Planning LLC acquired a new position in shares of Johnson & Johnson during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $40,000. Tower View Wealth Management LLC lifted its position in shares of Johnson & Johnson by 183.3% in the third quarter. Tower View Wealth Management LLC now owns 255 shares of the company’s stock valued at $40,000 after acquiring an additional 165 shares in the last quarter. WFA Asset Management Corp boosted its stake in shares of Johnson & Johnson by 61.4% in the fourth quarter. WFA Asset Management Corp now owns 255 shares of the company’s stock worth $40,000 after acquiring an additional 97 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Vermillion & White Wealth Management Group LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Johnson & Johnson during the fourth quarter worth approximately $44,000. 69.55% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Johnson & Johnson Trading Up 0.7 %

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.38, a quick ratio of 0.91 and a current ratio of 1.16. The company has a 50 day moving average of $156.32 and a 200 day moving average of $155.68. The stock has a market capitalization of $351.20 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 9.09, a P/E/G ratio of 2.39 and a beta of 0.53.

Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, April 16th. The company reported $2.71 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.64 by $0.07. The business had revenue of $21.38 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $21.39 billion. Johnson & Johnson had a net margin of 45.26% and a return on equity of 36.43%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 2.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $2.68 earnings per share. On average, research analysts predict that Johnson & Johnson will post 10.65 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Johnson & Johnson Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, June 4th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, May 21st will be given a $1.24 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, May 20th. This is a positive change from Johnson & Johnson’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.19. This represents a $4.96 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.40%. Johnson & Johnson’s dividend payout ratio is 29.68%.

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.