Financial Enhancement Group LLC Decreases Stock Holdings in Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ)

Financial Enhancement Group LLC reduced its holdings in Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ) by 9.0% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 1,554 shares of the company’s stock after selling 153 shares during the period. Financial Enhancement Group LLC’s holdings in Johnson & Johnson were worth $225,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. International Assets Investment Management LLC increased its stake in Johnson & Johnson by 20,130.0% during the third quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 3,454,473 shares of the company’s stock worth $559,832,000 after acquiring an additional 3,437,397 shares during the last quarter. Marshall Wace LLP boosted its holdings in shares of Johnson & Johnson by 506.9% in the 2nd quarter. Marshall Wace LLP now owns 3,884,962 shares of the company’s stock worth $567,826,000 after purchasing an additional 3,244,862 shares during the period. Janus Henderson Group PLC increased its position in shares of Johnson & Johnson by 228.1% during the 3rd quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC now owns 3,389,361 shares of the company’s stock valued at $549,223,000 after purchasing an additional 2,356,359 shares during the last quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. raised its holdings in Johnson & Johnson by 11.4% during the 3rd quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 16,840,069 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,721,355,000 after buying an additional 1,729,281 shares during the period. Finally, Holocene Advisors LP bought a new stake in Johnson & Johnson in the third quarter worth $225,040,000. 69.55% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, Director Mark A. Weinberger purchased 1,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, December 12th. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $147.22 per share, with a total value of $147,220.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 1,000 shares in the company, valued at $147,220. This represents a ∞ increase in their position. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. 0.16% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Johnson & Johnson Trading Down 0.5 %

NYSE JNJ opened at $147.03 on Friday. Johnson & Johnson has a one year low of $140.68 and a one year high of $168.85. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.45, a quick ratio of 0.79 and a current ratio of 1.03. The company has a market capitalization of $353.99 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.28, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.30 and a beta of 0.51. The company’s 50-day simple moving average is $148.68 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $155.96.

Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, October 15th. The company reported $2.42 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.21 by $0.21. The company had revenue of $22.47 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $22.17 billion. Johnson & Johnson had a net margin of 19.14% and a return on equity of 35.45%. Johnson & Johnson’s revenue for the quarter was up 5.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $2.66 earnings per share. Equities analysts forecast that Johnson & Johnson will post 9.94 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Johnson & Johnson Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, March 4th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, February 18th will be given a $1.24 dividend. This represents a $4.96 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.37%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, February 18th. Johnson & Johnson’s payout ratio is 71.78%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. Guggenheim increased their target price on shares of Johnson & Johnson from $156.00 to $162.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, November 6th. Citigroup decreased their price objective on shares of Johnson & Johnson from $185.00 to $175.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, December 11th. Wolfe Research initiated coverage on Johnson & Johnson in a report on Friday, November 15th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $190.00 price target on the stock. Bank of America cut their price objective on Johnson & Johnson from $166.00 to $160.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company increased their target price on Johnson & Johnson from $163.00 to $166.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 16th. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Johnson & Johnson currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $174.29.

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.