Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ) Shares Sold by Belmont Capital LLC

Belmont Capital LLC reduced its position in shares of Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ) by 79.5% during the third quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The fund owned 1,981 shares of the company’s stock after selling 7,679 shares during the quarter. Belmont Capital LLC’s holdings in Johnson & Johnson were worth $321,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of JNJ. Meridian Financial Partners LLC bought a new stake in Johnson & Johnson during the second quarter worth approximately $1,626,000. Meridian Investment Counsel Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Johnson & Johnson by 19.6% during the 3rd quarter. Meridian Investment Counsel Inc. now owns 22,629 shares of the company’s stock worth $3,667,000 after acquiring an additional 3,710 shares in the last quarter. Sheaff Brock Investment Advisors LLC grew its holdings in shares of Johnson & Johnson by 137.2% in the 3rd quarter. Sheaff Brock Investment Advisors LLC now owns 43,568 shares of the company’s stock worth $7,061,000 after acquiring an additional 25,203 shares during the last quarter. Lmcg Investments LLC raised its position in shares of Johnson & Johnson by 32.7% during the third quarter. Lmcg Investments LLC now owns 87,162 shares of the company’s stock worth $14,125,000 after purchasing an additional 21,471 shares during the period. Finally, WealthPlan Investment Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Johnson & Johnson by 7.3% during the third quarter. WealthPlan Investment Management LLC now owns 61,691 shares of the company’s stock valued at $9,998,000 after purchasing an additional 4,174 shares during the last quarter. 69.55% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling at Johnson & Johnson

In other Johnson & Johnson news, VP Robert J. Decker sold 5,635 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $165.06, for a total transaction of $930,113.10. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now directly owns 18,973 shares in the company, valued at $3,131,683.38. This represents a 22.90 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 0.16% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

JNJ has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. Cantor Fitzgerald restated an “overweight” rating and set a $215.00 price objective on shares of Johnson & Johnson in a report on Wednesday, October 16th. Royal Bank of Canada upped their price target on shares of Johnson & Johnson from $178.00 to $181.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 16th. Morgan Stanley lifted their price objective on shares of Johnson & Johnson from $169.00 to $175.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 16th. Daiwa Capital Markets cut Johnson & Johnson from an “outperform” rating to a “neutral” rating and decreased their target price for the stock from $160.00 to $150.00 in a research report on Tuesday, July 23rd. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company upped their price target on Johnson & Johnson from $163.00 to $166.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 16th. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $175.94.

Johnson & Johnson Stock Performance

JNJ stock opened at $154.77 on Tuesday. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $161.11 and a two-hundred day moving average of $156.16. Johnson & Johnson has a 12 month low of $143.13 and a 12 month high of $168.85. The company has a market capitalization of $372.63 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.40, a P/E/G ratio of 2.74 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.

Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, October 15th. The company reported $2.42 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates 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 analysts’ expectations of $22.17 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $2.66 earnings per share. Johnson & Johnson’s revenue for the quarter was up 5.2% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Johnson & Johnson will post 9.93 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Johnson & Johnson Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 10th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, November 26th will be given a dividend of $1.24 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, November 26th. This represents a $4.96 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.20%. Johnson & Johnson’s payout ratio is currently 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.