SP Asset Management LLC Cuts Stock Position in Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ)

SP Asset Management LLC cut its holdings in shares of Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ) by 0.4% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 91,341 shares of the company’s stock after selling 401 shares during the period. Johnson & Johnson comprises about 1.1% of SP Asset Management LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its 24th biggest position. SP Asset Management LLC’s holdings in Johnson & Johnson were worth $13,210,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. IFS Advisors LLC increased its stake in shares of Johnson & Johnson by 138.9% during the fourth quarter. IFS Advisors LLC now owns 172 shares of the company’s stock worth $25,000 after buying an additional 100 shares during the period. Bay Harbor Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Johnson & Johnson during the fourth quarter worth approximately $32,000. RPg Family Wealth Advisory LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Johnson & Johnson during the third quarter worth approximately $35,000. Activest Wealth Management purchased a new position in Johnson & Johnson in the third quarter valued at approximately $40,000. Finally, NewSquare Capital LLC increased its stake in Johnson & Johnson by 145.8% in the fourth quarter. NewSquare Capital LLC now owns 290 shares of the company’s stock valued at $42,000 after purchasing an additional 172 shares during the last quarter. 69.55% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling at Johnson & Johnson

In other 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 completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 15,098 shares in the company, valued at $2,357,552.70. This trade represents a 2.60 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, VP Robert J. Decker sold 6,999 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $165.88, for a total value of $1,160,994.12. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now owns 21,001 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,483,645.88. This represents a 25.00 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.16% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts have commented on JNJ shares. Royal Bank of Canada reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $181.00 price target on shares of Johnson & Johnson in a research note on Wednesday, February 19th. Guggenheim increased their price target on shares of Johnson & Johnson from $162.00 to $166.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. Argus upgraded shares of Johnson & Johnson to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Friday, January 24th. Wolfe Research started 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. Finally, Leerink Partners dropped their price target on shares of Johnson & Johnson from $182.00 to $169.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, January 23rd. Nine 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 company. According to MarketBeat, Johnson & Johnson currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $171.33.

Johnson & Johnson Price Performance

Shares of NYSE JNJ opened at $165.66 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.43, a current ratio of 1.11 and a quick ratio of 0.86. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $152.52 and a 200 day moving average price of $156.25. Johnson & Johnson has a 1-year low of $140.68 and a 1-year high of $169.99. The company has a market cap of $398.85 billion, a PE ratio of 24.91, a P/E/G ratio of 2.56 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, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.99 by $0.05. Johnson & Johnson had a return on equity of 34.24% and a net margin of 18.20%. The company had revenue of $22.52 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $22.44 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $2.29 earnings per share. Johnson & Johnson’s quarterly revenue was up 5.3% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts forecast that Johnson & Johnson will post 10.58 EPS for the current year.

Johnson & Johnson Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, March 4th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, February 18th were issued a $1.24 dividend. This represents a $4.96 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.99%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, February 18th. Johnson & Johnson’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 74.59%.

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.