Avantra Family Wealth Inc. Invests $262,000 in Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ)

Avantra Family Wealth Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ) in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm purchased 1,809 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $262,000.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of JNJ. Vinva Investment Management Ltd boosted its holdings in 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 purchasing an additional 7,110 shares during the period. Financial Counselors Inc. boosted its holdings in Johnson & Johnson by 5.3% in the third quarter. Financial Counselors Inc. now owns 185,093 shares of the company’s stock valued at $29,996,000 after purchasing an additional 9,309 shares during the period. Meridian Investment Counsel Inc. boosted its holdings in Johnson & Johnson by 19.6% in the third quarter. Meridian Investment Counsel Inc. now owns 22,629 shares of the company’s stock valued at $3,667,000 after purchasing an additional 3,710 shares during the period. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. boosted its holdings in Johnson & Johnson by 0.6% in the third quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 17,639,368 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,858,543,000 after purchasing an additional 102,502 shares during the period. Finally, Lord Abbett & CO. LLC purchased a new position in Johnson & Johnson in the third quarter valued at $69,859,000. 69.55% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Johnson & Johnson Stock Up 1.1 %

JNJ opened at $153.54 on Wednesday. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $147.53 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $156.10. The company has a quick ratio of 0.79, a current ratio of 1.03 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.45. The company has a market cap of $369.66 billion, a PE ratio of 23.09, a P/E/G ratio of 2.44 and a beta of 0.52. Johnson & Johnson has a 52 week low of $140.68 and a 52 week high of $168.85.

Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, January 22nd. The company reported $2.04 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.99 by $0.05. The firm had revenue of $22.52 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $22.44 billion. Johnson & Johnson had a return on equity of 34.35% and a net margin of 18.20%. The firm’s revenue 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. As a group, research analysts anticipate that Johnson & Johnson will post 10.58 EPS for the current year.

Johnson & Johnson Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, March 4th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, February 18th will be given a dividend of $1.24 per share. This represents a $4.96 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.23%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, February 18th. Johnson & Johnson’s payout ratio is 74.59%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Johnson & Johnson news, Director Mark A. Weinberger bought 1,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, December 12th. The shares were bought at an average price of $147.22 per share, for a total transaction of $147,220.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 1,000 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $147,220. This trade represents a ∞ increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. 0.16% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms recently issued reports on JNJ. Cantor Fitzgerald reiterated an “overweight” rating and issued a $215.00 target price on shares of Johnson & Johnson in a report on Wednesday, October 16th. Wells Fargo & Company cut their price target on Johnson & Johnson from $166.00 to $152.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, January 23rd. Raymond James cut their price target on Johnson & Johnson from $170.00 to $165.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, January 23rd. Citigroup cut their price target 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, StockNews.com upgraded Johnson & Johnson from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Saturday, January 25th. Nine investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have given a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $170.67.

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.