Watts Gwilliam & Co. LLC Reduces Position in Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ)

Watts Gwilliam & Co. LLC decreased its holdings in Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ) by 7.1% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 6,638 shares of the company’s stock after selling 507 shares during the period. Watts Gwilliam & Co. LLC’s holdings in Johnson & Johnson were worth $971,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the business. Legacy Private Trust Co. raised its stake in shares of Johnson & Johnson by 8.4% during the 4th quarter. Legacy Private Trust Co. now owns 39,173 shares of the company’s stock valued at $5,665,000 after purchasing an additional 3,047 shares during the period. Douglas Lane & Associates LLC grew its stake in Johnson & Johnson by 1.1% during the fourth quarter. Douglas Lane & Associates LLC now owns 599,386 shares of the company’s stock valued at $86,683,000 after acquiring an additional 6,526 shares in the last quarter. InvesTrust bought a new stake in Johnson & Johnson during the 4th quarter worth approximately $6,355,000. Fulton Bank N.A. lifted its stake in Johnson & Johnson by 7.8% in the 4th quarter. Fulton Bank N.A. now owns 47,550 shares of the company’s stock worth $6,877,000 after purchasing an additional 3,427 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Innova Wealth Partners purchased a new position in shares of Johnson & Johnson during the 4th quarter valued at $416,000. Institutional investors own 69.55% of the company’s stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Johnson & Johnson news, Director Mark A. Weinberger acquired 1,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, December 12th. The stock was acquired at an average price of $147.22 per share, for a total transaction of $147,220.00. Following the acquisition, the director now owns 1,000 shares in the company, valued at $147,220. This represents a ∞ increase in their position. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Insiders own 0.16% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

JNJ has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. Citigroup lowered their price objective on Johnson & Johnson from $185.00 to $175.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, December 11th. Royal Bank of Canada lifted their price target on Johnson & Johnson from $178.00 to $181.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 16th. StockNews.com cut shares of Johnson & Johnson from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday. Cantor Fitzgerald reiterated an “overweight” rating and set a $215.00 target price on shares of Johnson & Johnson in a research report on Wednesday, October 16th. Finally, Bank of America reissued a “neutral” rating and issued a $166.00 price target on shares of Johnson & Johnson in a report on Tuesday, December 10th. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $174.71.

Johnson & Johnson Stock Performance

Johnson & Johnson stock opened at $142.10 on Friday. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $150.03 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $156.04. The company has a quick ratio of 0.79, a current ratio of 1.03 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.45. Johnson & Johnson has a twelve month low of $141.44 and a twelve month high of $168.85. The company has a market capitalization of $342.12 billion, a PE ratio of 20.56, a P/E/G ratio of 2.52 and a beta of 0.51.

Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, October 15th. The company reported $2.42 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.21 by $0.21. Johnson & Johnson had a return on equity of 35.45% and a net margin of 19.14%. The company had revenue of $22.47 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $22.17 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $2.66 EPS. Johnson & Johnson’s quarterly revenue was up 5.2% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts expect that Johnson & Johnson will post 9.94 EPS for the current year.

Johnson & Johnson Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, March 4th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, February 18th will be given a dividend of $1.24 per share. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, February 18th. This represents a $4.96 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.49%. Johnson & Johnson’s payout ratio is currently 71.78%.

Johnson & Johnson 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.