Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ) Shares Sold by First Financial Bank Trust Division

First Financial Bank Trust Division decreased its stake in shares of Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ) by 4.1% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 60,225 shares of the company’s stock after selling 2,578 shares during the quarter. First Financial Bank Trust Division’s holdings in Johnson & Johnson were worth $8,710,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in JNJ. State Street Corp grew its holdings in shares of Johnson & Johnson by 0.9% in the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 134,245,811 shares of the company’s stock valued at $21,755,874,000 after purchasing an additional 1,154,088 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its holdings in Johnson & Johnson by 1.8% in the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 56,106,884 shares of the company’s stock valued at $9,064,149,000 after purchasing an additional 1,004,763 shares during the last quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA grew its stake in shares of Johnson & Johnson by 10.8% in the 2nd quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 18,780,645 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,744,979,000 after buying an additional 1,831,751 shares during the period. FMR LLC increased its holdings in shares of Johnson & Johnson by 7.4% during the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 18,316,920 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,968,440,000 after buying an additional 1,265,748 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. lifted 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 acquiring an additional 102,502 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 69.55% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity

In other Johnson & Johnson news, Director Mark A. Weinberger purchased 1,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, December 12th. The stock was purchased at an average cost of $147.22 per share, with a total value of $147,220.00. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director now directly owns 1,000 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $147,220. This trade represents a ∞ increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Company insiders own 0.16% of the company’s stock.

Johnson & Johnson Stock Down 0.4 %

Shares of JNJ traded down $0.60 during midday trading on Thursday, hitting $144.02. The company had a trading volume of 5,806,800 shares, compared to its average volume of 7,169,257. The company’s 50-day simple moving average is $152.12 and its 200-day simple moving average is $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 $142.75 and a 1 year high of $168.85. The firm has a market capitalization of $346.75 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.84, a P/E/G ratio of 2.52 and a beta of 0.51.

Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ) last posted its quarterly 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. The company had revenue of $22.47 billion during 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 was up 5.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $2.66 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that Johnson & Johnson will post 9.94 EPS for the current year.

Johnson & Johnson Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, March 4th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, February 18th will be issued a dividend of $1.24 per share. This represents a $4.96 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.44%. Johnson & Johnson’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 71.78%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts have commented on JNJ shares. Royal Bank of Canada lifted their target price on Johnson & Johnson from $178.00 to $181.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 16th. Cantor Fitzgerald reaffirmed an “overweight” rating and set a $215.00 target price on shares of Johnson & Johnson in a research note on Wednesday, October 16th. Wolfe Research assumed coverage on shares of Johnson & Johnson in a research note on Friday, November 15th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $190.00 price target on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their target price on shares of Johnson & Johnson from $163.00 to $166.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 16th. Finally, Guggenheim upped their price target on Johnson & Johnson from $156.00 to $162.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, November 6th. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seven have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $174.73.

Johnson & Johnson Company Profile

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.