Ausdal Financial Partners Inc. Boosts Stake in Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ)

Ausdal Financial Partners Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ) by 5.7% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 9,828 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 527 shares during the period. Ausdal Financial Partners Inc.’s holdings in Johnson & Johnson were worth $1,421,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the business. Vinva Investment Management Ltd raised its holdings in shares of Johnson & Johnson by 6.8% during the third quarter. Vinva Investment Management Ltd now owns 111,448 shares of the company’s stock valued at $17,988,000 after purchasing an additional 7,110 shares during the last quarter. Financial Counselors Inc. raised its stake in Johnson & Johnson by 5.3% during the 3rd quarter. Financial Counselors Inc. now owns 185,093 shares of the company’s stock valued at $29,996,000 after buying an additional 9,309 shares during the last quarter. Oregon Pacific Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Johnson & Johnson in the 4th quarter worth $949,000. Horan Securities Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Johnson & Johnson by 1.3% in the fourth quarter. Horan Securities Inc. now owns 7,178 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,038,000 after acquiring an additional 90 shares during the period. Finally, Strategic Financial Concepts LLC increased its position in Johnson & Johnson by 57.9% during the fourth quarter. Strategic Financial Concepts LLC now owns 3,467 shares of the company’s stock valued at $501,000 after acquiring an additional 1,271 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 69.55% of the company’s stock.

Johnson & Johnson Stock Up 0.4 %

JNJ opened at $161.64 on Thursday. The company has a market capitalization of $389.54 billion, a PE ratio of 24.31, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.56 and a beta of 0.47. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $158.04 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $156.18. The company has a quick ratio of 0.86, a current ratio of 1.11 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.43. Johnson & Johnson has a 52 week low of $140.68 and a 52 week high of $169.99.

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

Johnson & Johnson Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, March 4th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, February 18th were given a dividend of $1.24 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, February 18th. This represents a $4.96 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.07%. Johnson & Johnson’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 74.59%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, EVP Timothy Schmid sold 403 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $156.15, for a total value of $62,928.45. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 15,098 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $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 accessible through this hyperlink. Also, VP Robert J. Decker sold 6,999 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $165.88, for a total value of $1,160,994.12. Following the sale, the vice president now directly owns 21,001 shares in the company, valued at $3,483,645.88. The trade was a 25.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 0.16% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

JNJ has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. Argus upgraded Johnson & Johnson to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Friday, January 24th. Stifel Nicolaus decreased their price target on shares of Johnson & Johnson from $170.00 to $155.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, January 23rd. Guggenheim reissued a “neutral” rating on shares of Johnson & Johnson in a research report on Monday, March 10th. Citigroup decreased their target price on Johnson & Johnson from $185.00 to $175.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, December 11th. Finally, Raymond James reduced their price target on Johnson & Johnson from $170.00 to $165.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, January 23rd. Nine analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have given a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $171.33.

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.