Vest Financial LLC Purchases 65,464 Shares of Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ)

Vest Financial LLC boosted its position in Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ) by 26.2% during the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 315,493 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 65,464 shares during the period. Johnson & Johnson accounts for 1.1% of Vest Financial LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its 17th largest position. Vest Financial LLC’s holdings in Johnson & Johnson were worth $46,112,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in JNJ. Main Street Financial Solutions LLC raised its position in shares of Johnson & Johnson by 2.6% during the 2nd quarter. Main Street Financial Solutions LLC now owns 36,147 shares of the company’s stock valued at $5,283,000 after acquiring an additional 900 shares during the last quarter. Lansing Street Advisors boosted its position in shares of Johnson & Johnson by 3.2% in the 2nd quarter. Lansing Street Advisors now owns 5,506 shares of the company’s stock worth $805,000 after purchasing an additional 170 shares during the last quarter. Nelson Capital Management LLC boosted its position in shares of Johnson & Johnson by 30.0% in the 2nd quarter. Nelson Capital Management LLC now owns 5,523 shares of the company’s stock worth $807,000 after purchasing an additional 1,276 shares during the last quarter. Wambolt & Associates LLC boosted its position in shares of Johnson & Johnson by 11.9% in the 2nd quarter. Wambolt & Associates LLC now owns 18,009 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,637,000 after purchasing an additional 1,922 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Eagle Strategies LLC boosted its position in shares of Johnson & Johnson by 36.5% in the 2nd quarter. Eagle Strategies LLC now owns 3,677 shares of the company’s stock worth $537,000 after purchasing an additional 983 shares during the last quarter. 69.55% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, VP Robert J. Decker sold 5,635 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, August 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $165.06, for a total value of $930,113.10. Following the transaction, the vice president now owns 18,973 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,131,683.38. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Company insiders own 0.16% of the company’s stock.

Johnson & Johnson Price Performance

Shares of NYSE JNJ opened at $165.52 on Friday. The business’s 50 day moving average price is $159.55 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $154.04. The company has a market cap of $398.45 billion, a PE ratio of 10.32, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.71 and a beta of 0.53. The company has a quick ratio of 0.85, a current ratio of 1.07 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.44. Johnson & Johnson has a twelve month low of $143.13 and a twelve month high of $168.85.

Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 17th. The company reported $2.82 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.71 by $0.11. The firm had revenue of $22.45 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $22.33 billion. Johnson & Johnson had a return on equity of 36.60% and a net margin of 46.34%. The business’s revenue was up 4.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $2.80 earnings per share. On average, analysts predict that Johnson & Johnson will post 10.02 EPS for the current year.

Johnson & Johnson Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, September 10th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, August 27th were given a dividend of $1.24 per share. This represents a $4.96 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.00%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, August 27th. Johnson & Johnson’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 30.92%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

JNJ has been the topic of several recent research reports. The Goldman Sachs Group reduced their price target on Johnson & Johnson from $160.00 to $155.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, July 19th. Morgan Stanley raised their price target on Johnson & Johnson from $167.00 to $169.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Thursday, July 18th. StockNews.com upgraded Johnson & Johnson from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Saturday. TD Cowen reduced their target price on Johnson & Johnson from $195.00 to $185.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, July 18th. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein lifted their target price on Johnson & Johnson from $161.00 to $171.00 in a report on Thursday, July 18th. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, six have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $173.21.

Johnson & Johnson Profile

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.