Assenagon Asset Management S.A. Buys 824,228 Shares of Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ)

Assenagon Asset Management S.A. increased its stake in Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ) by 942.2% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 911,704 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 824,228 shares during the quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A.’s holdings in Johnson & Johnson were worth $131,851,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Highline Wealth Partners LLC bought a new stake in shares of Johnson & Johnson in the third quarter worth $31,000. RPg Family Wealth Advisory LLC purchased a new position in Johnson & Johnson in the third quarter worth about $35,000. Mowery & Schoenfeld Wealth Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Johnson & Johnson by 58.7% during the 3rd 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. Activest Wealth Management purchased a new stake in shares of Johnson & Johnson during the 3rd quarter valued at about $40,000. Finally, Morton Brown Family Wealth LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Johnson & Johnson by 400.0% in the third quarter. Morton Brown Family Wealth LLC now owns 250 shares of the company’s stock worth $41,000 after buying an additional 200 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 69.55% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity at Johnson & Johnson

In other news, Director Mark A. Weinberger acquired 1,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, December 12th. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $147.22 per share, with a total value of $147,220.00. Following the acquisition, the director now directly 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 transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. 0.16% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of analysts have commented on JNJ shares. Royal Bank of Canada upped their target price on shares of Johnson & Johnson from $178.00 to $181.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 16th. Wolfe Research began coverage on Johnson & Johnson in a report on Friday, November 15th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $190.00 target price on the stock. Guggenheim boosted their price target on Johnson & Johnson from $156.00 to $162.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, November 6th. Citigroup decreased their price objective on Johnson & Johnson from $185.00 to $175.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, December 11th. Finally, Bank of America reiterated a “neutral” rating and set a $166.00 price objective on shares of Johnson & Johnson in a research note on Tuesday, December 10th. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Johnson & Johnson has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $174.71.

Johnson & Johnson Trading Down 0.0 %

Johnson & Johnson stock opened at $144.74 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.45, a current ratio of 1.03 and a quick ratio of 0.79. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $149.12 and its 200-day moving average price is $156.09. Johnson & Johnson has a 1 year low of $140.68 and a 1 year high of $168.85. The stock has a market cap of $348.48 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.95, a PEG ratio of 2.52 and a beta of 0.51.

Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, October 15th. The company reported $2.42 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.21 by $0.21. Johnson & Johnson had a net margin of 19.14% and a return on equity of 35.45%. The company had revenue of $22.47 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $22.17 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $2.66 EPS. Johnson & Johnson’s revenue for the quarter was up 5.2% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities analysts predict that Johnson & Johnson will post 9.94 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Johnson & Johnson Dividend Announcement

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. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, February 18th. This represents a $4.96 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.43%. Johnson & Johnson’s dividend payout ratio is currently 71.78%.

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.