Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ) Shares Down 0.7% – Here’s Why

Shares of Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ) fell 0.7% during mid-day trading on Tuesday . The company traded as low as $153.43 and last traded at $153.48. 955,913 shares traded hands during trading, a decline of 86% from the average session volume of 7,048,502 shares. The stock had previously closed at $154.54.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts recently commented on the stock. Royal Bank of Canada boosted their price objective on shares of Johnson & Johnson from $178.00 to $181.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 16th. Wolfe Research started coverage on shares of Johnson & Johnson in a research report on Friday, November 15th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $190.00 target price for the company. Citigroup increased their target price on Johnson & Johnson from $180.00 to $185.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 16th. StockNews.com raised Johnson & Johnson from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Saturday, September 14th. Finally, Morgan Stanley upped their price target on Johnson & Johnson from $169.00 to $175.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 16th. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $175.94.

Johnson & Johnson Price Performance

The company has a current ratio of 1.03, a quick ratio of 0.79 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.45. The stock has a market cap of $371.54 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.21, a P/E/G ratio of 2.76 and a beta of 0.53. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $159.98 and a 200-day simple moving average of $156.36.

Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, October 15th. The company reported $2.42 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.21 by $0.21. The business had revenue of $22.47 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $22.17 billion. Johnson & Johnson had a net margin of 19.14% and a return on equity of 35.45%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 5.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $2.66 earnings per share. Research analysts expect that Johnson & Johnson will post 9.93 EPS for the current year.

Johnson & Johnson Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 10th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, November 26th will be given a dividend of $1.24 per share. This represents a $4.96 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.21%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, November 26th. Johnson & Johnson’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 71.78%.

Insider Activity

In related news, VP Robert J. Decker sold 5,635 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $165.06, for a total value of $930,113.10. Following the transaction, the vice president now owns 18,973 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,131,683.38. This represents a 22.90 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. 0.16% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Trading of Johnson & Johnson

A number of institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of JNJ. Tidal Investments LLC raised its position in shares of Johnson & Johnson by 11.1% in the 3rd quarter. Tidal Investments LLC now owns 186,860 shares of the company’s stock valued at $30,283,000 after buying an additional 18,605 shares in the last quarter. Destination Wealth Management grew its holdings in shares of Johnson & Johnson by 2.7% during the third quarter. Destination Wealth Management now owns 268,537 shares of the company’s stock worth $43,519,000 after purchasing an additional 7,133 shares during the last quarter. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB raised its stake in shares of Johnson & Johnson by 112.4% during the third quarter. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB now owns 501,138 shares of the company’s stock valued at $81,214,000 after acquiring an additional 265,215 shares during the last quarter. Arvest Bank Trust Division acquired a new position in Johnson & Johnson during the 3rd quarter worth about $14,341,000. Finally, World Investment Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in Johnson & Johnson by 189.5% in the third quarter. World Investment Advisors LLC now owns 82,736 shares of the company’s stock valued at $13,408,000 after acquiring an additional 54,162 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 69.55% of the company’s stock.

About Johnson & Johnson

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.