Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ) Shares Sold by Vaughan Nelson Investment Management L.P.

Vaughan Nelson Investment Management L.P. lessened its stake in Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ) by 97.1% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 19,690 shares of the company’s stock after selling 659,707 shares during the quarter. Vaughan Nelson Investment Management L.P.’s holdings in Johnson & Johnson were worth $3,115,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. 4J Wealth Management LLC increased its position in Johnson & Johnson by 2.2% during the fourth quarter. 4J Wealth Management LLC now owns 2,835 shares of the company’s stock worth $444,000 after purchasing an additional 62 shares during the last quarter. My Personal CFO LLC increased its holdings in shares of Johnson & Johnson by 1.4% during the 4th quarter. My Personal CFO LLC now owns 4,550 shares of the company’s stock worth $713,000 after buying an additional 62 shares during the last quarter. Eagle Strategies LLC raised its position in shares of Johnson & Johnson by 1.8% in the 4th quarter. Eagle Strategies LLC now owns 3,589 shares of the company’s stock worth $563,000 after buying an additional 63 shares during the period. Clearview Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in Johnson & Johnson by 1.5% in the fourth quarter. Clearview Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 4,373 shares of the company’s stock valued at $685,000 after acquiring an additional 64 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Brookmont Capital Management grew its position in Johnson & Johnson by 0.4% during the fourth quarter. Brookmont Capital Management now owns 14,852 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,328,000 after acquiring an additional 64 shares during the period. 69.55% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms have recently weighed in on JNJ. Cantor Fitzgerald reaffirmed an “overweight” rating and issued a $215.00 price objective on shares of Johnson & Johnson in a research note on Monday. HSBC upgraded shares of Johnson & Johnson from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and boosted their price objective for the stock from $169.00 to $170.00 in a research note on Thursday, April 18th. The Goldman Sachs Group began coverage on shares of Johnson & Johnson in a report on Thursday, May 30th. They set a “neutral” rating and a $160.00 target price on the stock. Morgan Stanley lowered their price target on Johnson & Johnson from $168.00 to $167.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, April 17th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada restated an “outperform” rating and set a $175.00 price objective on shares of Johnson & Johnson in a research note on Monday, June 17th. Eight investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, five have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $174.07.

Johnson & Johnson Stock Performance

Shares of JNJ opened at $145.62 on Thursday. The firm has a market cap of $350.46 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 9.08, a PEG ratio of 2.43 and a beta of 0.52. The company has a quick ratio of 0.94, a current ratio of 1.17 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.36. The business’s 50 day moving average is $148.02 and its two-hundred day moving average is $153.91. Johnson & Johnson has a 52-week low of $143.13 and a 52-week high of $175.97.

Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, April 16th. The company reported $2.71 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.64 by $0.07. The firm had revenue of $21.38 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $21.39 billion. Johnson & Johnson had a net margin of 45.26% and a return on equity of 36.70%. The firm’s revenue was up 2.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $2.68 EPS. Analysts forecast that Johnson & Johnson will post 10.62 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Johnson & Johnson Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, June 4th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, May 21st were paid a dividend of $1.24 per share. The ex-dividend date was Monday, May 20th. This represents a $4.96 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.41%. This is a boost from Johnson & Johnson’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.19. Johnson & Johnson’s dividend payout ratio is presently 30.92%.

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.