Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ) Price Target Lowered to $159.00 at Bank of America

Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ) had its price objective reduced by Bank of America from $160.00 to $159.00 in a report released on Thursday,Benzinga reports. They currently have a neutral rating on the stock.

Other equities research analysts have also recently issued reports about the stock. Cantor Fitzgerald reissued an “overweight” rating and set a $215.00 price target on shares of Johnson & Johnson in a research report on Wednesday, October 16th. Barclays reduced their price target on Johnson & Johnson from $160.00 to $159.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday. Citigroup lowered their price target on Johnson & Johnson from $185.00 to $175.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, December 11th. Royal Bank of Canada raised their target price on shares of Johnson & Johnson from $178.00 to $181.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 16th. Finally, Morgan Stanley upped their price target 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. Nine research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $170.06.

Johnson & Johnson Stock Up 0.9 %

Shares of NYSE JNJ opened at $146.58 on Thursday. Johnson & Johnson has a 52-week low of $140.68 and a 52-week high of $168.85. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.45, a quick ratio of 0.79 and a current ratio of 1.03. The stock has a market cap of $352.91 billion, a P/E ratio of 21.21, a P/E/G ratio of 2.52 and a beta of 0.51. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $148.10 and a 200 day moving average price of $156.05.

Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, January 22nd. The company reported $2.04 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.99 by $0.05. The business had revenue of $22.52 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $22,438,500 billion. Johnson & Johnson had a return on equity of 35.45% and a net margin of 19.14%. Johnson & Johnson’s revenue for the quarter was up 5.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $2.29 EPS. Analysts expect that Johnson & Johnson will post 9.95 EPS for the current year.

Johnson & Johnson Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, March 4th. Investors of record on Tuesday, February 18th will be issued a dividend of $1.24 per share. This represents a $4.96 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.38%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, February 18th. Johnson & Johnson’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 71.78%.

Insider Activity at Johnson & Johnson

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

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Johnson & Johnson

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Vinva Investment Management Ltd increased its stake in shares of Johnson & Johnson by 6.8% in the third quarter. Vinva Investment Management Ltd now owns 111,448 shares of the company’s stock valued at $17,988,000 after buying an additional 7,110 shares during the period. Financial Counselors Inc. grew its holdings in Johnson & Johnson by 5.3% during the 3rd quarter. Financial Counselors Inc. now owns 185,093 shares of the company’s stock worth $29,996,000 after acquiring an additional 9,309 shares during the last quarter. Meridian Investment Counsel Inc. increased its position in Johnson & Johnson by 19.6% in the 3rd quarter. Meridian Investment Counsel Inc. now owns 22,629 shares of the company’s stock valued at $3,667,000 after acquiring an additional 3,710 shares during the period. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Johnson & Johnson by 0.6% during the third quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 17,639,368 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,858,543,000 after purchasing an additional 102,502 shares during the period. Finally, Lord Abbett & CO. LLC bought a new stake in shares of Johnson & Johnson in the third quarter worth $69,859,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 69.55% of the company’s stock.

Johnson & Johnson Company Profile

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.