Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ) Shares Up 1.1% – What’s Next?

Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ) traded up 1.1% during trading on Wednesday . The company traded as high as $156.38 and last traded at $156.21. 888,886 shares traded hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 87% from the average session volume of 7,042,332 shares. The stock had previously closed at $154.52.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts have commented on the company. Citigroup boosted 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 upgraded Johnson & Johnson from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Saturday, September 14th. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price target on Johnson & Johnson from $163.00 to $166.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 16th. Wolfe Research assumed coverage on Johnson & Johnson in a research note on Friday, November 15th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $190.00 price target for the company. Finally, Guggenheim upped their price target on Johnson & Johnson from $156.00 to $162.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, November 6th. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Johnson & Johnson presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $175.94.

Johnson & Johnson Price Performance

The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $159.33 and a 200 day simple moving average of $156.38. 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 company has a market cap of $374.14 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.49, a P/E/G ratio of 2.76 and a beta of 0.53.

Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, October 15th. The company reported $2.42 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.21 by $0.21. The company had revenue of $22.47 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $22.17 billion. Johnson & Johnson had a return on equity of 35.45% and a net margin of 19.14%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 5.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $2.66 EPS. On average, equities analysts expect that Johnson & Johnson will post 9.93 EPS for the current year.

Johnson & Johnson Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 10th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, November 26th will be issued a $1.24 dividend. This represents a $4.96 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.19%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, November 26th. Johnson & Johnson’s payout ratio is 71.78%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Johnson & Johnson

Several institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Innealta Capital LLC bought a new stake in Johnson & Johnson during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $27,000. Highline Wealth Partners LLC acquired a new position in Johnson & Johnson in the third quarter worth $31,000. RPg Family Wealth Advisory LLC bought a new stake in shares of Johnson & Johnson during the third quarter worth $35,000. Mowery & Schoenfeld Wealth Management LLC raised 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 buying an additional 91 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Activest Wealth Management acquired a new position in Johnson & Johnson during the 3rd quarter worth about $40,000. 69.55% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

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.