Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ) Stock Price Up 0.2% – Should You Buy?

Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ)’s stock price was up 0.2% during mid-day trading on Thursday . The company traded as high as $146.37 and last traded at $146.07. Approximately 849,442 shares changed hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 88% from the average daily volume of 7,168,726 shares. The stock had previously closed at $145.85.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms have commented on JNJ. Bank of America restated a “neutral” rating and issued a $166.00 price objective on shares of Johnson & Johnson in a research report on Tuesday, December 10th. Royal Bank of Canada raised 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. Citigroup decreased their price objective on shares of Johnson & Johnson from $185.00 to $175.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, December 11th. Morgan Stanley raised their target price on Johnson & Johnson from $169.00 to $175.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 16th. Finally, Cantor Fitzgerald reaffirmed an “overweight” rating and issued a $215.00 price target on shares of Johnson & Johnson in a report on Wednesday, October 16th. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seven have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $174.73.

Johnson & Johnson Price Performance

The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $153.32 and a 200 day simple moving average of $156.19. The company has a market cap of $349.23 billion, a PE ratio of 20.99, a P/E/G ratio of 2.52 and a beta of 0.51. 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, 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 for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $22.17 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $2.66 EPS. Johnson & Johnson’s revenue was up 5.2% on a year-over-year basis. Equities analysts expect that Johnson & Johnson will post 9.94 EPS for the current year.

Johnson & Johnson Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, December 10th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, November 26th were given a $1.24 dividend. This represents a $4.96 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.42%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, November 26th. Johnson & Johnson’s payout ratio is 71.78%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Johnson & Johnson news, Director Mark A. Weinberger purchased 1,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, December 12th. The shares were bought at an average cost of $147.22 per share, for a total transaction of $147,220.00. Following the completion of the purchase, the director now directly owns 1,000 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $147,220. This trade represents a ∞ increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. 0.16% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Innealta Capital LLC acquired a new stake in Johnson & Johnson in the 2nd quarter valued at about $27,000. Lawson Kroeker Investment Management Inc. NE lifted its stake in Johnson & Johnson by 0.4% in the second quarter. Lawson Kroeker Investment Management Inc. NE now owns 53,591 shares of the company’s stock worth $7,833,000 after acquiring an additional 228 shares during the last quarter. Crossmark Global Holdings Inc. increased its position in shares of Johnson & Johnson by 2.0% in the 2nd quarter. Crossmark Global Holdings Inc. now owns 40,603 shares of the company’s stock valued at $5,934,000 after purchasing an additional 807 shares during the last quarter. Bank OZK raised its holdings in shares of Johnson & Johnson by 3.5% in the 2nd quarter. Bank OZK now owns 9,026 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,319,000 after purchasing an additional 305 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Argent Advisors Inc. increased its holdings in Johnson & Johnson by 5.7% in the second quarter. Argent Advisors Inc. now owns 16,342 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,389,000 after buying an additional 874 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 69.55% of the company’s stock.

About Johnson & Johnson

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.