Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ) Shares Down 1.5%

Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ) shares dropped 1.5% during mid-day trading on Tuesday . The company traded as low as $156.44 and last traded at $157.56. Approximately 2,568,313 shares were traded during mid-day trading, a decline of 65% from the average daily volume of 7,323,391 shares. The stock had previously closed at $159.88.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages have recently commented on JNJ. TD Securities dropped their target price on shares of Johnson & Johnson from $195.00 to $185.00 in a report on Thursday, July 18th. Daiwa Capital Markets cut shares of Johnson & Johnson from an “outperform” rating to a “neutral” rating and cut their price objective for the stock from $160.00 to $150.00 in a report on Tuesday, July 23rd. The Goldman Sachs Group lowered their target price on shares of Johnson & Johnson from $160.00 to $155.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Friday, July 19th. TD Cowen reduced their price objective on Johnson & Johnson from $195.00 to $185.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, July 18th. Finally, Bank of America dropped their target price on Johnson & Johnson from $180.00 to $170.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, April 17th. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Johnson & Johnson currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $173.21.

Johnson & Johnson Price Performance

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.44, a current ratio of 1.07 and a quick ratio of 0.85. The company has a market capitalization of $381.84 billion, a P/E ratio of 9.88, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.63 and a beta of 0.52. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $151.88 and its 200-day moving average is $153.10.

Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 17th. The company reported $2.82 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.71 by $0.11. Johnson & Johnson had a return on equity of 36.60% and a net margin of 46.34%. The business had revenue of $22.45 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $22.33 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $2.80 earnings per share. Johnson & Johnson’s revenue for the quarter was up 4.3% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts predict that Johnson & Johnson will post 10.07 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Johnson & Johnson Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 10th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, August 27th will be issued a dividend of $1.24 per share. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, August 27th. This represents a $4.96 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.13%. Johnson & Johnson’s dividend payout ratio is presently 30.92%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Johnson & Johnson

Institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Innealta Capital LLC purchased a new stake in Johnson & Johnson during the second quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Christopher J. Hasenberg Inc bought a new stake in Johnson & Johnson in the first quarter worth $31,000. WFA Asset Management Corp boosted its stake in Johnson & Johnson by 61.4% during the fourth quarter. WFA Asset Management Corp now owns 255 shares of the company’s stock worth $40,000 after buying an additional 97 shares during the period. Vermillion & White Wealth Management Group LLC bought a new position in Johnson & Johnson during the fourth quarter valued at $44,000. Finally, Disciplined Equity Management Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Johnson & Johnson in the fourth quarter valued at $45,000. 69.55% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.