Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ) Shares Sold by Wilkins Investment Counsel Inc.

Wilkins Investment Counsel Inc. decreased its stake in shares of Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ) by 2.1% in the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 125,880 shares of the company’s stock after selling 2,749 shares during the period. Johnson & Johnson accounts for about 2.6% of Wilkins Investment Counsel Inc.’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 10th biggest holding. Wilkins Investment Counsel Inc.’s holdings in Johnson & Johnson were worth $18,205,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. IFS Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Johnson & Johnson by 138.9% in the 4th quarter. IFS Advisors LLC now owns 172 shares of the company’s stock worth $25,000 after purchasing an additional 100 shares in the last quarter. Bay Harbor Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Johnson & Johnson in the 4th quarter worth $32,000. RPg Family Wealth Advisory LLC bought a new position in shares of Johnson & Johnson in the 3rd quarter worth $35,000. Activest Wealth Management bought a new position in shares of Johnson & Johnson in the 3rd quarter worth $40,000. Finally, NewSquare Capital LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Johnson & Johnson by 145.8% in the 4th quarter. NewSquare Capital LLC now owns 290 shares of the company’s stock worth $42,000 after purchasing an additional 172 shares in the last quarter. 69.55% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

JNJ has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. Guggenheim reiterated a “neutral” rating on shares of Johnson & Johnson in a report on Monday, March 10th. Citigroup dropped their price objective on Johnson & Johnson from $185.00 to $175.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, December 11th. Bank of America raised their price objective on Johnson & Johnson from $159.00 to $171.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 5th. Leerink Partners dropped their price objective on Johnson & Johnson from $182.00 to $169.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, January 23rd. Finally, StockNews.com upgraded Johnson & Johnson from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Saturday, January 25th. Nine research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have issued a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $171.33.

Insider Transactions at Johnson & Johnson

In related news, VP Robert J. Decker sold 6,999 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $165.88, for a total value of $1,160,994.12. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now owns 21,001 shares in the company, valued at $3,483,645.88. The trade was a 25.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, EVP Timothy Schmid sold 403 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred 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 sale, the executive vice president now owns 15,098 shares of the company’s stock, 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 owned by insiders.

Johnson & Johnson Stock Down 0.8 %

JNJ stock opened at $163.01 on Thursday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.86, a current ratio of 1.11 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.43. The firm has a market capitalization of $392.83 billion, a PE ratio of 24.51, a PEG ratio of 2.56 and a beta of 0.47. Johnson & Johnson has a twelve month low of $140.68 and a twelve month high of $169.99. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $156.15 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $156.30.

Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, January 22nd. The company reported $2.04 earnings per share 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 business had revenue of $22.52 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $22.44 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $2.29 EPS. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 5.3% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities analysts predict that Johnson & Johnson will post 10.58 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Johnson & Johnson Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, March 4th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, February 18th were issued a dividend of $1.24 per share. This represents a $4.96 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.04%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, February 18th. Johnson & Johnson’s payout ratio is 74.59%.

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.