Mechanics Bank Trust Department Sells 2,310 Shares of Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ)

Mechanics Bank Trust Department trimmed its position in shares of Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ) by 3.9% during the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 57,296 shares of the company’s stock after selling 2,310 shares during the quarter. Johnson & Johnson accounts for approximately 1.2% of Mechanics Bank Trust Department’s holdings, making the stock its 25th largest position. Mechanics Bank Trust Department’s holdings in Johnson & Johnson were worth $8,374,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Norges Bank bought a new position in shares of Johnson & Johnson in the 4th quarter worth approximately $4,071,642,000. Wellington Management Group LLP boosted its stake in shares of Johnson & Johnson by 16.4% during the 4th quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 24,019,725 shares of the company’s stock worth $3,764,852,000 after acquiring an additional 3,391,657 shares during the last quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD grew its position in shares of Johnson & Johnson by 16.8% during the 1st quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 21,834,359 shares of the company’s stock valued at $3,453,978,000 after acquiring an additional 3,139,499 shares during the period. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. increased its stake in shares of Johnson & Johnson by 1.5% in the 4th quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 15,945,533 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,483,532,000 after purchasing an additional 241,799 shares in the last quarter. Finally, California Public Employees Retirement System raised its holdings in Johnson & Johnson by 4.9% in the 4th quarter. California Public Employees Retirement System now owns 10,620,264 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,664,620,000 after purchasing an additional 498,647 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 69.55% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts have recently commented on JNJ shares. Morgan Stanley raised their price objective on Johnson & Johnson from $167.00 to $169.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Thursday, July 18th. TD Securities dropped their price target on shares of Johnson & Johnson from $195.00 to $185.00 in a research report on Thursday, July 18th. StockNews.com downgraded shares of Johnson & Johnson from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday. Daiwa America downgraded shares of Johnson & Johnson from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, July 23rd. Finally, HSBC raised Johnson & Johnson from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and raised their price target for the company from $169.00 to $170.00 in a report on Thursday, April 18th. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Johnson & Johnson has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $173.21.

Johnson & Johnson Price Performance

JNJ traded up $0.40 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $160.62. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 4,579,186 shares, compared to its average volume of 7,354,407. Johnson & Johnson has a 12 month low of $143.13 and a 12 month high of $175.97. The company has a current ratio of 1.07, a quick ratio of 0.85 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.44. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $151.17 and its 200-day moving average price is $153.06. The stock has a market cap of $386.56 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.01, a P/E/G ratio of 2.63 and a beta of 0.52.

Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, July 17th. The company reported $2.82 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.71 by $0.11. The firm had revenue of $22.45 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $22.33 billion. Johnson & Johnson had a net margin of 46.34% and a return on equity of 36.60%. The business’s revenue was up 4.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $2.80 EPS. Sell-side analysts expect that Johnson & Johnson will post 10.07 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Johnson & Johnson Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 10th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, August 27th will be paid a dividend of $1.24 per share. This represents a $4.96 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.09%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, August 27th. Johnson & Johnson’s payout ratio is 30.92%.

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.