Eagle Asset Management Inc. Grows Stock Position in Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ)

Eagle Asset Management Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ) by 22.1% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 57,612 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 10,439 shares during the quarter. Eagle Asset Management Inc.’s holdings in Johnson & Johnson were worth $8,957,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other large investors have also bought and sold shares of the stock. Meridian Financial Partners LLC purchased a new stake in Johnson & Johnson during the 2nd quarter valued at $1,626,000. Meridian Investment Counsel Inc. raised its stake in shares of Johnson & Johnson by 19.6% during the third quarter. Meridian Investment Counsel Inc. now owns 22,629 shares of the company’s stock valued at $3,667,000 after acquiring an additional 3,710 shares during the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Johnson & Johnson by 0.6% during the third quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 17,639,368 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,858,543,000 after purchasing an additional 102,502 shares during the period. Sheaff Brock Investment Advisors LLC increased its holdings in Johnson & Johnson by 137.2% during the 3rd quarter. Sheaff Brock Investment Advisors LLC now owns 43,568 shares of the company’s stock valued at $7,061,000 after purchasing an additional 25,203 shares during the period. Finally, Lmcg Investments LLC raised its position in Johnson & Johnson by 32.7% during the 3rd quarter. Lmcg Investments LLC now owns 87,162 shares of the company’s stock valued at $14,125,000 after purchasing an additional 21,471 shares during the last quarter. 69.55% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

JNJ has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. Citigroup raised their price target on Johnson & Johnson from $180.00 to $185.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 16th. Cantor Fitzgerald reaffirmed an “overweight” rating and set a $215.00 target price on shares of Johnson & Johnson in a research note on Wednesday, October 16th. Morgan Stanley increased their price target on shares of Johnson & Johnson from $169.00 to $175.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 16th. StockNews.com raised Johnson & Johnson from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Saturday, September 14th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada raised their target price on Johnson & Johnson from $178.00 to $181.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 16th. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $175.94.

Insider Activity

In related news, VP Robert J. Decker sold 5,635 shares of Johnson & Johnson stock in a transaction on Friday, August 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $165.06, for a total value of $930,113.10. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now owns 18,973 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,131,683.38. The trade was a 22.90 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. 0.16% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Johnson & Johnson Trading Down 0.2 %

NYSE:JNJ opened at $155.17 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $373.59 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.46, a PEG ratio of 2.76 and a beta of 0.53. The company has a quick ratio of 0.79, a current ratio of 1.03 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.45. The company’s 50 day moving average price is $160.21 and its 200-day moving average price is $156.26. Johnson & Johnson has a 52 week low of $143.13 and a 52 week high of $168.85.

Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, October 15th. The company reported $2.42 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.21 by $0.21. The business had revenue of $22.47 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $22.17 billion. Johnson & Johnson had a return on equity of 35.45% and a net margin of 19.14%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 5.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $2.66 EPS. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Johnson & Johnson will post 9.93 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Johnson & Johnson Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 10th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, November 26th 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 3.20%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, November 26th. Johnson & Johnson’s payout ratio is presently 71.78%.

Johnson & Johnson 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.