Van ECK Associates Corp Purchases 88,107 Shares of Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ)

Van ECK Associates Corp grew its position in Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ) by 12.7% during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 780,186 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 88,107 shares during the period. Van ECK Associates Corp’s holdings in Johnson & Johnson were worth $129,401,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the company. Innealta Capital LLC bought a new stake in shares of Johnson & Johnson in the second quarter worth $27,000. Highline Wealth Partners LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Johnson & Johnson in the third quarter valued at about $31,000. Mowery & Schoenfeld Wealth Management LLC boosted its position in Johnson & Johnson by 58.7% during the third 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 last quarter. Morton Brown Family Wealth LLC grew its stake in Johnson & Johnson by 400.0% in the third quarter. Morton Brown Family Wealth LLC now owns 250 shares of the company’s stock valued at $41,000 after purchasing an additional 200 shares in the last quarter. Finally, MFA Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Johnson & Johnson during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $43,000. 69.55% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Johnson & Johnson from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Saturday, September 14th. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price target on shares of Johnson & Johnson from $163.00 to $166.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 16th. Morgan Stanley raised their price objective 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. Daiwa Capital Markets downgraded Johnson & Johnson from an “outperform” rating to a “neutral” rating and decreased their target price for the company from $160.00 to $150.00 in a research report on Tuesday, July 23rd. Finally, Cantor Fitzgerald reissued an “overweight” rating and set a $215.00 price target on shares of Johnson & Johnson in a report on Wednesday, October 16th. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seven have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Johnson & Johnson currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $175.93.

Insider Buying and Selling at Johnson & Johnson

In related news, VP Robert J. Decker sold 5,635 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, August 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $165.06, for a total value of $930,113.10. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now owns 18,973 shares in the company, valued at $3,131,683.38. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 0.16% of the company’s stock.

Johnson & Johnson Price Performance

Johnson & Johnson stock opened at $160.13 on Monday. 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 52 week low of $143.13 and a 52 week high of $168.85. The stock has a market capitalization of $385.53 billion, a P/E ratio of 23.17, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.84 and a beta of 0.52. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $163.31 and a 200-day moving average of $155.59.

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

Johnson & Johnson Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 10th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, November 26th will be paid a $1.24 dividend. This represents a $4.96 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.10%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, November 26th. Johnson & Johnson’s payout ratio is 71.78%.

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.