Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ) Shares Purchased by Avestar Capital LLC

Avestar Capital LLC raised its holdings in Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ) by 19.2% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 13,090 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 2,110 shares during the period. Avestar Capital LLC’s holdings in Johnson & Johnson were worth $2,121,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

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

Insider Buying and Selling at Johnson & Johnson

In other news, VP Robert J. Decker sold 5,635 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred 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 transaction, the vice president now owns 18,973 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,131,683.38. The trade was a 22.90 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. 0.16% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Johnson & Johnson Price Performance

Shares of NYSE JNJ opened at $154.21 on Tuesday. The stock has a market cap of $371.28 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.54, a P/E/G ratio of 2.76 and a beta of 0.53. Johnson & Johnson has a twelve month low of $143.13 and a twelve month high of $168.85. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $159.98 and a two-hundred day moving average of $156.36. The company has a current ratio of 1.03, a quick ratio of 0.79 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.45.

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

Johnson & Johnson Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 10th. Investors 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 3.22%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, November 26th. Johnson & Johnson’s dividend payout ratio is currently 71.78%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages have issued reports on JNJ. Cantor Fitzgerald reiterated an “overweight” rating and set a $215.00 price target on shares of Johnson & Johnson in a research note on Wednesday, October 16th. Wells Fargo & Company upped their target price on shares of Johnson & Johnson from $163.00 to $166.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 16th. Wolfe Research assumed coverage on Johnson & Johnson in a report on Friday, November 15th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $190.00 target price on the stock. Morgan Stanley lifted their price target on Johnson & Johnson from $169.00 to $175.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 16th. Finally, Guggenheim increased their price objective on Johnson & Johnson from $156.00 to $162.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, November 6th. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Johnson & Johnson currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $175.94.

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.