Raymond James & Associates Buys 322,634 Shares of Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ)

Raymond James & Associates increased its position in Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ) by 5.3% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 6,384,341 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 322,634 shares during the period. Johnson & Johnson accounts for approximately 0.7% of Raymond James & Associates’ investment portfolio, making the stock its 21st biggest holding. Raymond James & Associates owned about 0.26% of Johnson & Johnson worth $1,009,939,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in JNJ. Norges Bank bought a new position in shares of Johnson & Johnson in the fourth quarter valued at $4,071,642,000. Wellington Management Group LLP lifted its position in Johnson & Johnson by 16.4% in the 4th quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 24,019,725 shares of the company’s stock valued at $3,764,852,000 after acquiring an additional 3,391,657 shares in the last quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC boosted its stake in Johnson & Johnson by 7,875.8% during the 4th quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 2,090,384 shares of the company’s stock valued at $327,647,000 after purchasing an additional 2,064,175 shares during the last quarter. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC bought a new stake in Johnson & Johnson during the 4th quarter worth approximately $193,050,000. Finally, Global Assets Advisory LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Johnson & Johnson in the first quarter worth approximately $170,372,000. 69.55% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling at Johnson & Johnson

In other news, EVP Jennifer L. Taubert sold 59,397 shares of Johnson & Johnson stock in a transaction on Friday, February 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $156.27, for a total value of $9,281,969.19. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 141,416 shares in the company, valued at $22,099,078.32. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. In other Johnson & Johnson news, major shareholder & Johnson Johnson sold 3,725 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, February 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $25.81, for a total value of $96,142.25. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 4,099,575 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $105,810,030.75. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, EVP Jennifer L. Taubert sold 59,397 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Friday, February 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $156.27, for a total transaction of $9,281,969.19. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 141,416 shares in the company, valued at approximately $22,099,078.32. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 0.16% of the company’s stock.

Johnson & Johnson Stock Performance

NYSE:JNJ traded down $0.68 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $146.14. The stock had a trading volume of 6,182,982 shares, compared to its average volume of 7,728,638. The stock has a market cap of $352.17 billion, a P/E ratio of 9.11, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.42 and a beta of 0.53. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $155.26 and a 200 day simple moving average of $155.32. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.38, a quick ratio of 0.91 and a current ratio of 1.16. Johnson & Johnson has a 12-month low of $143.13 and a 12-month high of $175.97.

Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, April 16th. The company reported $2.71 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.64 by $0.07. The business had revenue of $21.38 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $21.39 billion. Johnson & Johnson had a return on equity of 36.43% and a net margin of 45.26%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 2.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $2.68 EPS. On average, research analysts forecast that Johnson & Johnson will post 10.65 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Johnson & Johnson Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, June 4th. Investors of record on Tuesday, May 21st will be paid a $1.24 dividend. This represents a $4.96 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.39%. This is a positive change from Johnson & Johnson’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.19. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, May 20th. Johnson & Johnson’s payout ratio is currently 29.68%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

JNJ has been the topic of several analyst reports. Bank of America cut their target price on Johnson & Johnson from $180.00 to $170.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, April 17th. Royal Bank of Canada reduced their target price on shares of Johnson & Johnson from $181.00 to $175.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, April 17th. HSBC raised shares of Johnson & Johnson from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and raised their price target for the company from $169.00 to $170.00 in a research report on Thursday, April 18th. Raymond James upped their price objective on shares of Johnson & Johnson from $172.00 to $175.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 3rd. Finally, Cantor Fitzgerald restated an “overweight” rating and issued a $215.00 target price on shares of Johnson & Johnson in a research note on Monday, April 15th. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, six have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $175.86.

Johnson & Johnson Company 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.