Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ) Trading 1.7% Higher

Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ) shares traded up 1.7% during mid-day trading on Thursday . The stock traded as high as $160.58 and last traded at $158.96. 2,666,870 shares were traded during mid-day trading, a decline of 63% from the average session volume of 7,290,503 shares. The stock had previously closed at $156.28.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several analysts have recently commented on JNJ shares. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Johnson & Johnson from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Sunday, June 30th. Cantor Fitzgerald reaffirmed an “overweight” rating and issued a $215.00 price objective on shares of Johnson & Johnson in a report on Monday, July 1st. Bank of America cut their target price on Johnson & Johnson from $180.00 to $170.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, April 17th. HSBC upgraded Johnson & Johnson from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and lifted their price target for the company from $169.00 to $170.00 in a research note on Thursday, April 18th. Finally, TD Securities cut their price objective on Johnson & Johnson from $195.00 to $185.00 in a research report on Thursday, July 18th. Eight investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, six have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Johnson & Johnson presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $173.00.

Johnson & Johnson Trading Up 2.3 %

The business has a 50-day moving average of $148.51 and a 200 day moving average of $153.20. The stock has a market cap of $384.83 billion, a PE ratio of 9.91, a PEG ratio of 2.49 and a beta of 0.52. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.36, a quick ratio of 0.94 and a current ratio of 1.17.

Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 17th. The company reported $2.82 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.71 by $0.11. The business had revenue of $22.45 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $22.33 billion. Johnson & Johnson had a net margin of 46.34% and a return on equity of 36.79%. The company’s revenue was up 4.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $2.80 earnings per share. Equities research analysts predict that Johnson & Johnson will post 10.07 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Johnson & Johnson Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 10th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, August 27th will be issued a dividend of $1.24 per share. This represents a $4.96 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.10%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, August 27th. Johnson & Johnson’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 30.92%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Johnson & Johnson

Institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Christopher J. Hasenberg Inc acquired a new position in shares of Johnson & Johnson during the 1st quarter valued at about $31,000. Keener Financial Planning LLC acquired a new position in Johnson & Johnson during the fourth quarter worth approximately $40,000. WFA Asset Management Corp boosted its holdings in shares of Johnson & Johnson by 61.4% in the 4th quarter. WFA Asset Management Corp now owns 255 shares of the company’s stock valued at $40,000 after purchasing an additional 97 shares during the last quarter. MFA Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Johnson & Johnson during the 2nd quarter valued at $43,000. Finally, Vermillion & White Wealth Management Group LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Johnson & Johnson during the 4th quarter worth $44,000. 69.55% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.