James Hambro & Partners LLP Reduces Stock Holdings in Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ)

James Hambro & Partners LLP cut its holdings in Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ) by 22.0% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 2,838 shares of the company’s stock after selling 800 shares during the period. James Hambro & Partners LLP’s holdings in Johnson & Johnson were worth $410,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Quarry LP purchased a new stake in Johnson & Johnson during the 2nd quarter worth about $49,000. Ashburton Jersey Ltd acquired a new stake in shares of Johnson & Johnson during the 2nd quarter worth about $8,771,000. Mattson Financial Services LLC acquired a new position in shares of Johnson & Johnson in the second quarter valued at approximately $3,407,000. First Financial Bank Trust Division lifted its stake in shares of Johnson & Johnson by 1.3% during the third quarter. First Financial Bank Trust Division now owns 62,803 shares of the company’s stock valued at $10,178,000 after buying an additional 779 shares during the period. Finally, Davis Capital Management boosted its position in Johnson & Johnson by 4.4% during the third quarter. Davis Capital Management now owns 10,432 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,691,000 after acquiring an additional 441 shares during the last quarter. 69.55% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Johnson & Johnson Trading Up 1.1 %

NYSE:JNJ opened at $152.78 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.45, a quick ratio of 0.79 and a current ratio of 1.03. Johnson & Johnson has a one year low of $140.68 and a one year high of $168.85. The business’s 50-day simple moving average is $147.73 and its 200 day simple moving average is $156.10. The stock has a market cap of $367.82 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.97, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.45 and a beta of 0.51.

Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, January 22nd. The company reported $2.04 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.99 by $0.05. The business had revenue of $22.52 billion during 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 business’s quarterly revenue was up 5.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $2.29 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Johnson & Johnson will post 10.56 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, March 4th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, February 18th will be given a dividend of $1.24 per share. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, February 18th. This represents a $4.96 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.25%. Johnson & Johnson’s payout ratio is 74.59%.

Insider Activity at Johnson & Johnson

In other news, Director Mark A. Weinberger bought 1,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, December 12th. The stock was bought at an average price of $147.22 per share, for a total transaction of $147,220.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 1,000 shares in the company, valued at $147,220. The trade was a ∞ increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. 0.16% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages have weighed in on JNJ. Barclays increased their price target on Johnson & Johnson from $159.00 to $166.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Tuesday. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price target on 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. Cantor Fitzgerald reaffirmed an “overweight” rating and set a $215.00 price objective on shares of Johnson & Johnson in a research note on Wednesday, October 16th. Citigroup lowered their target price on shares of Johnson & Johnson from $185.00 to $175.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, December 11th. Finally, StockNews.com raised shares of Johnson & Johnson from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Saturday, January 25th. Nine investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have assigned a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $170.44.

About Johnson & Johnson

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.