Sierra Ocean LLC Takes Position in Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ)

Sierra Ocean LLC bought a new stake in shares of Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ) during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor bought 2,042 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $295,000.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the business. IFS Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Johnson & Johnson by 138.9% in the fourth quarter. IFS Advisors LLC now owns 172 shares of the company’s stock valued at $25,000 after purchasing an additional 100 shares during the period. Highline Wealth Partners LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Johnson & Johnson in the third quarter valued at approximately $31,000. Bay Harbor Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Johnson & Johnson in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $32,000. RPg Family Wealth Advisory LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Johnson & Johnson in the third quarter valued at approximately $35,000. Finally, Mowery & Schoenfeld Wealth Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Johnson & Johnson by 58.7% in the third quarter. Mowery & Schoenfeld Wealth Management LLC now owns 246 shares of the company’s stock valued at $40,000 after purchasing an additional 91 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 69.55% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity at Johnson & Johnson

In other Johnson & Johnson news, EVP Timothy Schmid sold 403 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $156.15, for a total transaction of $62,928.45. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly 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 document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, 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 transaction, the director now directly owns 1,000 shares in the company, valued at $147,220. This trade represents a ∞ increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. 0.16% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Johnson & Johnson Price Performance

NYSE JNJ opened at $157.93 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.43, a current ratio of 1.11 and a quick ratio of 0.86. The stock’s fifty day moving average price is $148.34 and its 200 day moving average price is $155.86. Johnson & Johnson has a 1 year low of $140.68 and a 1 year high of $168.85. The company has a market cap of $380.23 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 23.75, a PEG ratio of 2.50 and a beta of 0.52.

Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, January 22nd. The company reported $2.04 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.99 by $0.05. Johnson & Johnson had a return on equity of 34.24% and a net margin of 18.20%. The firm had revenue of $22.52 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $22.44 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $2.29 EPS. The firm’s revenue was up 5.3% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Johnson & Johnson will post 10.58 earnings per share for the current year.

Johnson & Johnson Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, March 4th. Investors of record on Tuesday, February 18th will be given a $1.24 dividend. This represents a $4.96 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.14%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, February 18th. Johnson & Johnson’s payout ratio is 74.59%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

JNJ has been the subject of a number of research reports. Morgan Stanley lowered their price target on Johnson & Johnson from $175.00 to $163.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, January 23rd. Wolfe Research began coverage on Johnson & Johnson in a report on Friday, November 15th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $190.00 target price for the company. Stifel Nicolaus lowered their target price on Johnson & Johnson from $170.00 to $155.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, January 23rd. StockNews.com upgraded Johnson & Johnson from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Saturday, January 25th. Finally, Barclays upped their target price on Johnson & Johnson from $159.00 to $166.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Tuesday, January 28th. Nine investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have given a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target 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.