First Merchants Corp Sells 2,894 Shares of Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ)

First Merchants Corp lessened its stake in Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ) by 4.0% in the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 68,924 shares of the company’s stock after selling 2,894 shares during the period. First Merchants Corp’s holdings in Johnson & Johnson were worth $9,968,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. IFS Advisors LLC grew its position in shares of Johnson & Johnson by 138.9% during the 4th quarter. IFS Advisors LLC now owns 172 shares of the company’s stock valued at $25,000 after acquiring an additional 100 shares during the period. Highline Wealth Partners LLC bought a new stake in shares of Johnson & Johnson during the 3rd quarter valued at $31,000. RPg Family Wealth Advisory LLC bought a new stake in shares of Johnson & Johnson during the 3rd quarter valued at $35,000. Bay Harbor Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Johnson & Johnson during the 4th quarter valued at $32,000. Finally, Mowery & Schoenfeld Wealth Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of Johnson & Johnson by 58.7% during the 3rd quarter. Mowery & Schoenfeld Wealth Management LLC now owns 246 shares of the company’s stock valued at $40,000 after buying an additional 91 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 69.55% of the company’s stock.

Johnson & Johnson Stock Down 0.7 %

Shares of NYSE JNJ opened at $156.20 on Monday. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $147.87 and its 200-day moving average price is $155.96. The company has a current ratio of 1.03, a quick ratio of 0.79 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.45. The stock has a market capitalization of $376.08 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 23.49, a P/E/G ratio of 2.46 and a beta of 0.52. Johnson & Johnson has a 12-month low of $140.68 and a 12-month high of $168.85.

Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, January 22nd. The company reported $2.04 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.99 by $0.05. The company had revenue of $22.52 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $22.44 billion. Johnson & Johnson had a net margin of 18.20% and a return on equity of 34.35%. The firm’s revenue was up 5.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $2.29 EPS. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Johnson & Johnson will post 10.58 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Johnson & Johnson Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, March 4th. Investors of record on Tuesday, February 18th will be issued a dividend of $1.24 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, February 18th. This represents a $4.96 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.18%. Johnson & Johnson’s payout ratio is 74.59%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms recently weighed in on JNJ. Royal Bank of Canada restated an “outperform” rating and set a $181.00 target price on shares of Johnson & Johnson in a research note on Thursday, January 23rd. Morgan Stanley lowered their target price on shares of Johnson & Johnson from $175.00 to $163.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, January 23rd. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their target price on shares of Johnson & Johnson from $166.00 to $152.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, January 23rd. Stifel Nicolaus lowered their target price on shares of Johnson & Johnson from $170.00 to $155.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, January 23rd. Finally, StockNews.com upgraded shares of Johnson & Johnson from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Saturday, January 25th. Nine analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have issued a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Johnson & Johnson currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $170.67.

Insider Activity at Johnson & Johnson

In related news, Director Mark A. Weinberger bought 1,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, December 12th. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $147.22 per share, for a total transaction of $147,220.00. Following the purchase, the director now directly owns 1,000 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $147,220. The trade was a ∞ increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. 0.16% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Johnson & Johnson Company Profile

Johnson & Johnson is a holding company, which engages in the research, development, manufacture, and sale of products in the healthcare field. It operates through the Innovative Medicine and MedTech segments. The Innovative Medicine segment focuses on immunology, infectious diseases, neuroscience, oncology, cardiovascular and metabolism, and pulmonary hypertension.