Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ) Position Reduced by Yacktman Asset Management LP

Yacktman Asset Management LP trimmed its stake in shares of Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ) by 1.9% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 1,386,756 shares of the company’s stock after selling 26,644 shares during the quarter. Johnson & Johnson makes up 2.3% of Yacktman Asset Management LP’s portfolio, making the stock its 17th biggest position. Yacktman Asset Management LP’s holdings in Johnson & Johnson were worth $200,553,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in JNJ. AMF Tjanstepension AB boosted its stake in Johnson & Johnson by 14.2% during the 3rd quarter. AMF Tjanstepension AB now owns 425,261 shares of the company’s stock valued at $68,985,000 after acquiring an additional 52,997 shares during the last quarter. Alpha Financial Partners LLC bought a new position in shares of Johnson & Johnson in the 3rd quarter worth about $209,000. Wealth Group Ltd. bought a new position in shares of Johnson & Johnson in the 3rd quarter worth about $213,000. Wedge Capital Management L L P NC lifted its position in shares of Johnson & Johnson by 2.2% in the 3rd quarter. Wedge Capital Management L L P NC now owns 4,039 shares of the company’s stock worth $655,000 after buying an additional 86 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Creative Planning lifted its position in shares of Johnson & Johnson by 4.3% in the 3rd quarter. Creative Planning now owns 988,403 shares of the company’s stock worth $160,181,000 after buying an additional 41,082 shares during the last quarter. 69.55% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms have recently issued reports on JNJ. Morgan Stanley reduced their price target on shares of Johnson & Johnson from $175.00 to $163.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, January 23rd. Citigroup reduced their price target on shares of Johnson & Johnson from $185.00 to $175.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, December 11th. Barclays increased their price objective on shares of Johnson & Johnson from $159.00 to $166.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Tuesday, January 28th. Guggenheim increased their price objective on shares of Johnson & Johnson from $162.00 to $166.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Monday, February 3rd. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and issued a $181.00 price objective on shares of Johnson & Johnson in a report on Thursday, January 23rd. Nine equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have assigned a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $170.67.

Johnson & Johnson Stock Down 0.7 %

Johnson & Johnson stock opened at $156.20 on Friday. Johnson & Johnson has a 52 week low of $140.68 and a 52 week high of $168.85. The company has a current ratio of 1.03, a quick ratio of 0.79 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.45. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $147.73 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $156.01. The stock has a market cap of $376.08 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 23.49, a PEG ratio of 2.46 and a beta of 0.52.

Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, January 22nd. The company reported $2.04 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.99 by $0.05. Johnson & Johnson had a net margin of 18.20% and a return on equity of 34.35%. The business had revenue of $22.52 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $22.44 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $2.29 EPS. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 5.3% on a year-over-year basis. On average, analysts expect that Johnson & Johnson will post 10.58 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Johnson & Johnson Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced 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 of this dividend is Tuesday, February 18th. This represents a $4.96 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.18%. Johnson & Johnson’s payout ratio is currently 74.59%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, Director Mark A. Weinberger bought 1,000 shares of the company’s 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 completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 1,000 shares in the company, valued at approximately $147,220. The trade was a ∞ increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Insiders own 0.16% of the company’s stock.

Johnson & Johnson Company 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.