Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ) Shares Up 1.1% – Should You Buy?

Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ)’s share price was up 1.1% during mid-day trading on Friday . The stock traded as high as $161.69 and last traded at $161.39. Approximately 3,607,042 shares were traded during mid-day trading, a decline of 59% from the average daily volume of 8,790,578 shares. The stock had previously closed at $159.68.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts have issued reports on JNJ shares. Guggenheim boosted their price objective on shares of Johnson & Johnson from $162.00 to $166.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. Raymond James lowered their price objective on shares of Johnson & Johnson from $170.00 to $165.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, January 23rd. Bank of America lowered their price objective on shares of Johnson & Johnson from $160.00 to $159.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, January 23rd. Argus raised shares of Johnson & Johnson to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Friday, January 24th. Finally, StockNews.com raised shares of Johnson & Johnson from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Saturday, January 25th. Nine investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have given a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $170.67.

Johnson & Johnson Stock Performance

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 stock has a market cap of $390.87 billion, a P/E ratio of 24.41, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.56 and a beta of 0.52. The firm’s 50 day moving average is $148.93 and its 200 day moving average is $155.88.

Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, January 22nd. The company reported $2.04 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.99 by $0.05. The firm had revenue of $22.52 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $22.44 billion. Johnson & Johnson had a net margin of 18.20% and a return on equity of 34.24%. Johnson & Johnson’s revenue was up 5.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $2.29 EPS. Analysts anticipate that Johnson & Johnson will post 10.58 EPS for the current year.

Johnson & Johnson Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, March 4th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, February 18th will be paid a dividend of $1.24 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, February 18th. This represents a $4.96 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.06%. Johnson & Johnson’s payout ratio is 74.59%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Johnson & Johnson

In related news, Director Mark A. Weinberger purchased 1,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, December 12th. The shares were acquired at an average price of $147.22 per share, for a total transaction of $147,220.00. Following the purchase, the director now 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 document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, EVP Timothy Schmid sold 403 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $156.15, for a total transaction of $62,928.45. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 15,098 shares in the company, valued at $2,357,552.70. The trade was a 2.60 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.16% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Trading of Johnson & Johnson

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. IFS Advisors LLC increased its stake in shares of Johnson & Johnson by 138.9% in the fourth quarter. IFS Advisors LLC now owns 172 shares of the company’s stock worth $25,000 after acquiring an additional 100 shares during the period. WealthTrak Capital Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Johnson & Johnson in the fourth quarter worth $26,000. Mountain Hill Investment Partners Corp. acquired a new stake in shares of Johnson & Johnson in the fourth quarter worth $29,000. Highline Wealth Partners LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Johnson & Johnson in the third quarter worth $31,000. Finally, Bay Harbor Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Johnson & Johnson in the fourth quarter worth $32,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 69.55% of the company’s stock.

About Johnson & Johnson

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.