O Shaughnessy Asset Management LLC Cuts Stock Position in Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ)

O Shaughnessy Asset Management LLC trimmed its position in Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ) by 2.7% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 659,708 shares of the company’s stock after selling 18,014 shares during the period. Johnson & Johnson makes up about 0.8% of O Shaughnessy Asset Management LLC’s holdings, making the stock its 15th biggest position. O Shaughnessy Asset Management LLC’s holdings in Johnson & Johnson were worth $95,407,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. IFS Advisors LLC raised its holdings in Johnson & Johnson by 138.9% during the fourth quarter. IFS Advisors LLC now owns 172 shares of the company’s stock worth $25,000 after purchasing an additional 100 shares in the last quarter. WealthTrak Capital Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Johnson & Johnson during the 4th quarter worth approximately $26,000. Mountain Hill Investment Partners Corp. acquired a new stake in shares of Johnson & Johnson in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $29,000. Bay Harbor Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Johnson & Johnson in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $32,000. Finally, Runnymede Capital Advisors Inc. acquired a new position in Johnson & Johnson during the fourth quarter worth $38,000. 69.55% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Johnson & Johnson Stock Up 0.3 %

Shares of NYSE JNJ opened at $163.63 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $394.32 billion, a PE ratio of 24.61, a P/E/G ratio of 2.56 and a beta of 0.47. The company has a quick ratio of 0.86, a current ratio of 1.11 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.43. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $158.68 and a 200-day moving average of $156.13. Johnson & Johnson has a 52-week low of $140.68 and a 52-week high of $169.99.

Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, January 22nd. The company reported $2.04 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.99 by $0.05. The company had revenue of $22.52 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $22.44 billion. Johnson & Johnson had a return on equity of 34.24% and a net margin of 18.20%. The firm’s revenue was up 5.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $2.29 earnings per share. On average, analysts anticipate that Johnson & Johnson will post 10.58 EPS for the current year.

Johnson & Johnson Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, March 4th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, February 18th were given a dividend of $1.24 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, February 18th. This represents a $4.96 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.03%. Johnson & Johnson’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 74.59%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Johnson & Johnson news, VP Robert J. Decker sold 6,999 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $165.88, for a total value of $1,160,994.12. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now owns 21,001 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,483,645.88. This trade represents a 25.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, EVP Timothy Schmid sold 403 shares of the business’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 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 disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.16% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

JNJ has been the topic of several research analyst reports. Argus upgraded shares of Johnson & Johnson to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Friday, January 24th. Guggenheim reiterated a “neutral” rating on shares of Johnson & Johnson in a research report on Monday, March 10th. Leerink Partners dropped their target price on shares of Johnson & Johnson from $182.00 to $169.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, January 23rd. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Johnson & Johnson from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Saturday, January 25th. Finally, Bank of America upped their target price on Johnson & Johnson from $159.00 to $171.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 5th. Nine investment 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, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $171.33.

Johnson & Johnson 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.