Searle & CO. Grows Stock Holdings in Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ)

Searle & CO. raised its position in shares of Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ) by 4.8% in the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 42,912 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 1,950 shares during the period. Johnson & Johnson comprises about 1.5% of Searle & CO.’s holdings, making the stock its 16th largest holding. Searle & CO.’s holdings in Johnson & Johnson were worth $6,272,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of JNJ. Vestmark Advisory Solutions Inc. raised its stake in shares of Johnson & Johnson by 12.7% in the fourth quarter. Vestmark Advisory Solutions Inc. now owns 19,587 shares of the company’s stock valued at $3,070,000 after acquiring an additional 2,201 shares in the last quarter. Meridian Financial Partners LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Johnson & Johnson in the second quarter valued at $1,626,000. Summit Financial Wealth Advisors LLC raised its stake in shares of Johnson & Johnson by 26.3% in the first quarter. Summit Financial Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 5,392 shares of the company’s stock valued at $853,000 after acquiring an additional 1,122 shares in the last quarter. Gilbert & Cook Inc. raised its stake in shares of Johnson & Johnson by 3.3% in the fourth quarter. Gilbert & Cook Inc. now owns 9,111 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,428,000 after acquiring an additional 288 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Franklin Parlapiano Turner & Welch LLC raised its stake in shares of Johnson & Johnson by 0.7% in the first quarter. Franklin Parlapiano Turner & Welch LLC now owns 47,186 shares of the company’s stock valued at $7,464,000 after acquiring an additional 325 shares in the last quarter. 69.55% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts have weighed in on the company. Cantor Fitzgerald restated an “overweight” rating and issued a $215.00 price target on shares of Johnson & Johnson in a research note on Monday, August 5th. Sanford C. Bernstein raised their price target on Johnson & Johnson from $161.00 to $171.00 in a research note on Thursday, July 18th. Daiwa Capital Markets cut Johnson & Johnson from an “outperform” rating to a “neutral” rating and cut their price target for the company from $160.00 to $150.00 in a research note on Tuesday, July 23rd. TD Securities cut their price target on Johnson & Johnson from $195.00 to $185.00 in a research note on Thursday, July 18th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group cut their price target on Johnson & Johnson from $160.00 to $155.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, July 19th. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, six have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Johnson & Johnson has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $173.21.

Johnson & Johnson Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE JNJ traded up $1.63 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $165.86. 7,971,017 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 7,271,470. The company has a current ratio of 1.07, a quick ratio of 0.85 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.44. Johnson & Johnson has a 1 year low of $143.13 and a 1 year high of $165.98. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $155.34 and a 200 day simple moving average of $153.45. The stock has a market cap of $399.17 billion, a P/E ratio of 10.34, a PEG ratio of 2.63 and a beta of 0.52.

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, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.71 by $0.11. Johnson & Johnson had a return on equity of 36.60% and a net margin of 46.34%. The firm had revenue of $22.45 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $22.33 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $2.80 earnings per share. The business’s revenue was up 4.3% on a year-over-year basis. On average, research analysts forecast that Johnson & Johnson will post 10.07 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Johnson & Johnson Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 10th. Investors of record on Tuesday, August 27th will be issued a dividend of $1.24 per share. This represents a $4.96 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.99%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, August 27th. Johnson & Johnson’s dividend payout ratio is currently 30.92%.

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.