Bell Bank Boosts Holdings in Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ)

Bell Bank raised its stake in Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ) by 2.7% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 4,394 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 115 shares during the quarter. Bell Bank’s holdings in Johnson & Johnson were worth $635,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of JNJ. AMF Tjanstepension AB lifted its holdings in Johnson & Johnson by 14.2% during the third quarter. AMF Tjanstepension AB now owns 425,261 shares of the company’s stock valued at $68,985,000 after purchasing an additional 52,997 shares during the last quarter. Alpha Financial Partners LLC bought a new stake in shares of Johnson & Johnson in the third quarter valued at approximately $209,000. Wealth Group Ltd. bought a new position in Johnson & Johnson in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $213,000. Swedbank AB grew its stake in Johnson & Johnson by 5.3% in the 3rd quarter. Swedbank AB now owns 2,215,108 shares of the company’s stock valued at $358,980,000 after buying an additional 111,570 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Allworth Financial LP raised its holdings in Johnson & Johnson by 2.5% during the 3rd quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 296,904 shares of the company’s stock valued at $48,116,000 after acquiring an additional 7,196 shares during the period. 69.55% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Johnson & Johnson Price Performance

JNJ opened at $163.81 on Tuesday. The stock has a market capitalization of $394.38 billion, a P/E ratio of 24.63, a PEG ratio of 2.56 and a beta of 0.52. The company has a current ratio of 1.11, a quick ratio of 0.86 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.43. Johnson & Johnson has a 12-month low of $140.68 and a 12-month high of $168.85. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $149.33 and a 200-day moving average price of $155.88.

Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, January 22nd. The company reported $2.04 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.99 by $0.05. The business had revenue of $22.52 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $22.44 billion. Johnson & Johnson had a net margin of 18.20% and a return on equity of 34.24%. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 5.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the business earned $2.29 earnings per share. Equities analysts predict that Johnson & Johnson will post 10.58 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Johnson & Johnson Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, March 4th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, February 18th will be given a dividend of $1.24 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, February 18th. This represents a $4.96 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.03%. Johnson & Johnson’s payout ratio is 74.59%.

Insider Activity

In other Johnson & Johnson news, EVP Timothy Schmid sold 403 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $156.15, for a total value of $62,928.45. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 15,098 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,357,552.70. This trade represents a 2.60 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, Director Mark A. Weinberger bought 1,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, December 12th. The stock was acquired 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 $147,220. The trade was a ∞ increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Insiders own 0.16% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts have recently weighed in on the company. Citigroup reduced their price target on Johnson & Johnson from $185.00 to $175.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, December 11th. Stifel Nicolaus lowered their price target on shares of Johnson & Johnson from $170.00 to $155.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, January 23rd. Bank of America cut their price objective on shares of Johnson & Johnson from $160.00 to $159.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, January 23rd. Argus upgraded shares of Johnson & Johnson to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Friday, January 24th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company cut their price target on shares of Johnson & Johnson from $166.00 to $152.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, January 23rd. Nine equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have issued a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Johnson & Johnson presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $170.67.

About Johnson & Johnson

Johnson & Johnson is a holding company, which engages in the research, development, manufacture, and sale of products in the healthcare field. It operates through the Innovative Medicine and MedTech segments. The Innovative Medicine segment focuses on immunology, infectious diseases, neuroscience, oncology, cardiovascular and metabolism, and pulmonary hypertension.