Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ) Shares Sold by Rockland Trust Co.

Rockland Trust Co. cut its holdings in Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ) by 3.8% during the first quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 116,078 shares of the company’s stock after selling 4,550 shares during the period. Rockland Trust Co.’s holdings in Johnson & Johnson were worth $18,362,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in Johnson & Johnson in the 4th quarter valued at about $4,071,642,000. Wellington Management Group LLP lifted its stake in Johnson & Johnson by 16.4% during the fourth quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 24,019,725 shares of the company’s stock worth $3,764,852,000 after purchasing an additional 3,391,657 shares in the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. boosted its position in shares of Johnson & Johnson by 1.5% during the fourth quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 15,945,533 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,483,532,000 after buying an additional 241,799 shares during the period. California Public Employees Retirement System grew its stake in shares of Johnson & Johnson by 4.9% in the fourth quarter. California Public Employees Retirement System now owns 10,620,264 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,664,620,000 after buying an additional 498,647 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Dimensional Fund Advisors LP raised its holdings in shares of Johnson & Johnson by 10.6% in the 4th quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 10,169,190 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,593,908,000 after buying an additional 975,485 shares during the period. 69.55% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Johnson & Johnson Stock Performance

Shares of JNJ stock traded up $0.97 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $148.75. 15,176,869 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 6,685,153. Johnson & Johnson has a 1 year low of $143.13 and a 1 year high of $175.97. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.36, a current ratio of 1.17 and a quick ratio of 0.94. The company’s 50 day moving average is $148.05 and its two-hundred day moving average is $154.38. The company has a market cap of $357.99 billion, a P/E ratio of 9.27, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.46 and a beta of 0.53.

Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 16th. The company reported $2.71 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.64 by $0.07. The business had revenue of $21.38 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $21.39 billion. Johnson & Johnson had a net margin of 45.26% and a return on equity of 36.70%. The business’s revenue was up 2.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $2.68 EPS. Equities research analysts anticipate that Johnson & Johnson will post 10.63 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Johnson & Johnson Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, June 4th. Investors of record on Tuesday, May 21st were paid a $1.24 dividend. This is an increase from Johnson & Johnson’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.19. This represents a $4.96 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.33%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, May 20th. Johnson & Johnson’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 30.92%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

JNJ has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. Bank of America lowered their target price on Johnson & Johnson from $180.00 to $170.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, April 17th. HSBC upgraded shares of Johnson & Johnson from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and lifted their price objective for the company from $169.00 to $170.00 in a report on Thursday, April 18th. StockNews.com lowered shares of Johnson & Johnson from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Saturday. Morgan Stanley cut their price objective on Johnson & Johnson from $168.00 to $167.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, April 17th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group started coverage on Johnson & Johnson in a research report on Thursday, May 30th. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $160.00 price target on the stock. Eight analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $174.07.

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.