Apella Capital LLC Increases Stock Position in Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ)

Apella Capital LLC grew its stake in Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ) by 1.5% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 24,335 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 348 shares during the period. Apella Capital LLC’s holdings in Johnson & Johnson were worth $3,519,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. International Assets Investment Management LLC lifted 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 purchasing an additional 3,437,397 shares in the last quarter. Marshall Wace LLP raised 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 valued at $567,826,000 after buying an additional 3,244,862 shares during the period. Janus Henderson Group PLC lifted its stake in Johnson & Johnson by 228.1% during the 3rd quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC now owns 3,389,361 shares of the company’s stock worth $549,223,000 after acquiring an additional 2,356,359 shares in the last quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. boosted 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 acquiring an additional 1,729,281 shares during the period. Finally, Holocene Advisors LP acquired a new position in Johnson & Johnson in the 3rd quarter valued at about $225,040,000. 69.55% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Transactions at Johnson & Johnson

In other Johnson & Johnson news, Director Mark A. Weinberger purchased 1,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, December 12th. The stock was purchased at an average price of $147.22 per share, for a total transaction of $147,220.00. Following the purchase, the director now directly owns 1,000 shares in the company, valued at approximately $147,220. This trade represents a ∞ increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Insiders own 0.16% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

JNJ has been the subject of several recent research reports. Cantor Fitzgerald reissued an “overweight” rating and issued a $215.00 price objective on shares of Johnson & Johnson in a research note on Wednesday, October 16th. Royal Bank of Canada boosted their price target on shares of Johnson & Johnson from $178.00 to $181.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 16th. Wolfe Research started coverage on Johnson & Johnson in a research note on Friday, November 15th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $190.00 price objective on the stock. Bank of America restated a “neutral” rating and set a $166.00 price target on shares of Johnson & Johnson in a report on Tuesday, December 10th. Finally, StockNews.com cut Johnson & Johnson from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $174.71.

Johnson & Johnson Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:JNJ opened at $147.78 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.45, a current ratio of 1.03 and a quick ratio of 0.79. Johnson & Johnson has a 12 month low of $140.68 and a 12 month high of $168.85. The firm has a market capitalization of $355.79 billion, a P/E ratio of 21.39, a P/E/G ratio of 2.30 and a beta of 0.51. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $148.86 and its 200 day moving average price is $156.01.

Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, October 15th. The company reported $2.42 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.21 by $0.21. The business had revenue of $22.47 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $22.17 billion. Johnson & Johnson had a return on equity of 35.45% and a net margin of 19.14%. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 5.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $2.66 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Johnson & Johnson will post 9.94 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Johnson & Johnson Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, March 4th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, February 18th will be issued a $1.24 dividend. This represents a $4.96 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.36%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, February 18th. Johnson & Johnson’s payout ratio is currently 71.78%.

Johnson & Johnson Company 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.