Morningstar Investment Management LLC Buys 303 Shares of Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ)

Morningstar Investment Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ) by 5.5% during the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The firm owned 5,855 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 303 shares during the quarter. Morningstar Investment Management LLC’s holdings in Johnson & Johnson were worth $847,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. First Bank & Trust bought a new stake in shares of Johnson & Johnson during the 4th quarter valued at $936,000. Hardy Reed LLC raised its stake in shares of Johnson & Johnson by 3.9% during the 4th quarter. Hardy Reed LLC now owns 12,901 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,866,000 after purchasing an additional 488 shares during the period. Advyzon Investment Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Johnson & Johnson during the 4th quarter valued at $732,000. Handelsbanken Fonder AB raised its stake in shares of Johnson & Johnson by 2.7% during the 4th quarter. Handelsbanken Fonder AB now owns 1,541,425 shares of the company’s stock valued at $222,921,000 after purchasing an additional 39,826 shares during the period. Finally, Mcdaniel Terry & Co. raised its stake in shares of Johnson & Johnson by 5.3% during the 4th quarter. Mcdaniel Terry & Co. now owns 194,783 shares of the company’s stock valued at $28,170,000 after purchasing an additional 9,780 shares during the period. 69.55% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Johnson & Johnson Stock Up 1.7 %

Shares of NYSE:JNJ opened at $162.35 on Monday. Johnson & Johnson has a 52-week low of $140.68 and a 52-week high of $168.85. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.43, a quick ratio of 0.86 and a current ratio of 1.11. The firm has a market capitalization of $390.87 billion, a P/E ratio of 24.41, a P/E/G ratio of 2.56 and a beta of 0.52. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $148.93 and a 200-day moving average price of $155.86.

Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, January 22nd. The company reported $2.04 EPS for the quarter, beating 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 for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $22.44 billion. During the same period last year, the business posted $2.29 EPS. The company’s revenue was up 5.3% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that Johnson & Johnson will post 10.58 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Johnson & Johnson Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, March 4th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, February 18th will be paid 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 3.06%. Johnson & Johnson’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 74.59%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

JNJ has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. Wolfe Research initiated coverage on Johnson & Johnson in a research report on Friday, November 15th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $190.00 target price for the company. Barclays boosted their target price on Johnson & Johnson from $159.00 to $166.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 28th. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their target price on Johnson & Johnson from $166.00 to $152.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, January 23rd. Bank of America cut their price objective on Johnson & Johnson from $160.00 to $159.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, January 23rd. Finally, Raymond James cut their price objective on Johnson & Johnson from $170.00 to $165.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, January 23rd. Nine analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have issued a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Johnson & Johnson presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $170.67.

Insider Transactions at Johnson & Johnson

In related news, EVP Timothy Schmid sold 403 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction 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 transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 15,098 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,357,552.70. This trade represents a 2.60 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, Director Mark A. Weinberger bought 1,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, December 12th. The stock was bought at an average cost of $147.22 per share, for a total transaction of $147,220.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director now owns 1,000 shares in the company, valued at $147,220. This trade represents a ∞ increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Company insiders own 0.16% of the company’s stock.

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.