SL Advisors LLC Cuts Holdings in Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ)

SL Advisors LLC lessened its stake in shares of Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ) by 18.8% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 1,638 shares of the company’s stock after selling 378 shares during the quarter. SL Advisors LLC’s holdings in Johnson & Johnson were worth $237,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in JNJ. Fulton Bank N.A. boosted its position in shares of Johnson & Johnson by 7.8% in the 4th quarter. Fulton Bank N.A. now owns 47,550 shares of the company’s stock worth $6,877,000 after purchasing an additional 3,427 shares in the last quarter. Innova Wealth Partners acquired a new stake in Johnson & Johnson in the fourth quarter worth about $416,000. Range Financial Group LLC grew its stake in shares of Johnson & Johnson by 509.9% during the fourth quarter. Range Financial Group LLC now owns 13,357 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,932,000 after acquiring an additional 11,167 shares during the last quarter. Canandaigua National Trust Co of Florida raised its position in shares of Johnson & Johnson by 13.2% in the 4th quarter. Canandaigua National Trust Co of Florida now owns 2,250 shares of the company’s stock valued at $325,000 after purchasing an additional 263 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Capital Market Strategies LLC boosted its stake in Johnson & Johnson by 5.8% in the 4th quarter. Capital Market Strategies LLC now owns 7,723 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,117,000 after purchasing an additional 425 shares in the last quarter. 69.55% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Johnson & Johnson Price Performance

Shares of Johnson & Johnson stock traded down $4.31 on Wednesday, hitting $141.92. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 5,601,090 shares, compared to its average volume of 6,700,690. The company has a market capitalization of $341.69 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.54, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.52 and a beta of 0.51. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $150.75 and a 200-day moving average price of $156.23. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.45, a quick ratio of 0.79 and a current ratio of 1.03. Johnson & Johnson has a 1 year low of $141.44 and a 1 year high of $168.85.

Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ) last released 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. The firm had revenue of $22.47 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations 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 company earned $2.66 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Johnson & Johnson will post 9.94 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Johnson & Johnson Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, March 4th. Investors of record on Tuesday, February 18th will be issued a $1.24 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, February 18th. This represents a $4.96 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.49%. Johnson & Johnson’s dividend payout ratio is presently 71.78%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, Director Mark A. Weinberger purchased 1,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, December 12th. The stock was acquired at an average price of $147.22 per share, for a total transaction 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. This represents a ∞ increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. 0.16% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms have recently commented on JNJ. Royal Bank of Canada lifted their price objective on shares of Johnson & Johnson from $178.00 to $181.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 16th. Wolfe Research began coverage on Johnson & Johnson in a research note on Friday, November 15th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $190.00 price target on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price objective 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. Morgan Stanley raised their price target on shares of Johnson & Johnson from $169.00 to $175.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 16th. Finally, Bank of America reaffirmed a “neutral” rating and issued a $166.00 price objective on shares of Johnson & Johnson in a report on Tuesday, December 10th. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Johnson & Johnson currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $174.71.

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.