Principal Financial Group Inc. Has $496.33 Million Stock Position in Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ)

Principal Financial Group Inc. reduced its position in Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ) by 1.2% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 3,431,982 shares of the company’s stock after selling 40,330 shares during the period. Principal Financial Group Inc.’s holdings in Johnson & Johnson were worth $496,333,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. AMF Tjanstepension AB grew its position in Johnson & Johnson by 14.2% in the third quarter. AMF Tjanstepension AB now owns 425,261 shares of the company’s stock worth $68,985,000 after acquiring an additional 52,997 shares in the last quarter. Alpha Financial Partners LLC bought a new stake in Johnson & Johnson in the third quarter worth $209,000. Wealth Group Ltd. acquired a new position in Johnson & Johnson during the third quarter worth $213,000. Swedbank AB raised its holdings in Johnson & Johnson by 5.3% during the third quarter. Swedbank AB now owns 2,215,108 shares of the company’s stock valued at $358,980,000 after buying an additional 111,570 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Foundations Investment Advisors LLC boosted its stake in shares of Johnson & Johnson by 21.4% during the 3rd quarter. Foundations Investment Advisors LLC now owns 15,749 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,552,000 after acquiring an additional 2,773 shares in the last quarter. 69.55% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Johnson & Johnson Stock Performance

NYSE JNJ opened at $157.93 on Thursday. The stock has a market cap of $380.23 billion, a P/E ratio of 23.75, a PEG ratio of 2.50 and a beta of 0.52. The company has a quick ratio of 0.86, a current ratio of 1.11 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.43. Johnson & Johnson has a twelve month low of $140.68 and a twelve month high of $168.85. The company’s 50-day simple moving average is $148.34 and its 200 day simple moving average is $155.86.

Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, January 22nd. The company reported $2.04 EPS for the quarter, topping 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 business had revenue of $22.52 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $22.44 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $2.29 EPS. Johnson & Johnson’s revenue was up 5.3% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, research analysts forecast that Johnson & Johnson will post 10.58 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 dividend of $1.24 per share. This represents a $4.96 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.14%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, February 18th. Johnson & Johnson’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 74.59%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts recently weighed in on the company. StockNews.com upgraded Johnson & Johnson from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Saturday, January 25th. Guggenheim raised their target price on shares of Johnson & Johnson from $162.00 to $166.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. Barclays boosted their target price on shares of Johnson & Johnson from $159.00 to $166.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 28th. Raymond James lowered their price target on Johnson & Johnson from $170.00 to $165.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, January 23rd. Finally, Leerink Partners decreased their target price on Johnson & Johnson from $182.00 to $169.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, January 23rd. Nine research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have issued a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Johnson & Johnson has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $170.67.

Insider Activity at Johnson & Johnson

In other Johnson & Johnson news, Director Mark A. Weinberger bought 1,000 shares of Johnson & Johnson 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 $147,220. The trade was a ∞ increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, EVP Timothy Schmid sold 403 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $156.15, for a total value of $62,928.45. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 15,098 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,357,552.70. This trade represents a 2.60 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.16% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Johnson & Johnson 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.