AQR Capital Management LLC Buys 313,672 Shares of Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ)

AQR Capital Management LLC grew its stake in Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ) by 9.9% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 3,472,635 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 313,672 shares during the quarter. Johnson & Johnson makes up approximately 0.6% of AQR Capital Management LLC’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 14th largest holding. AQR Capital Management LLC’s holdings in Johnson & Johnson were worth $500,094,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Norges Bank acquired a new position in shares of Johnson & Johnson in the fourth quarter valued at about $4,390,037,000. Raymond James Financial Inc. acquired a new position in Johnson & Johnson during the 4th quarter worth approximately $1,339,878,000. Northern Trust Corp boosted its position in Johnson & Johnson by 12.3% in the fourth quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 30,813,175 shares of the company’s stock valued at $4,456,201,000 after buying an additional 3,363,235 shares in the last quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its stake in shares of Johnson & Johnson by 0.8% during the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 232,792,559 shares of the company’s stock worth $33,666,460,000 after buying an additional 1,772,706 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Franklin Resources Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Johnson & Johnson by 11.4% during the third quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 16,840,069 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,721,355,000 after buying an additional 1,729,281 shares in the last quarter. 69.55% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insider Activity at Johnson & Johnson

In other Johnson & Johnson news, VP Robert J. Decker sold 6,999 shares of the stock in a transaction dated 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 sale, the vice president now owns 21,001 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,483,645.88. This trade represents a 25.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, EVP Timothy Schmid sold 403 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $156.15, for a total transaction 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 approximately $2,357,552.70. This trade represents 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.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts have recently issued reports on JNJ shares. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Johnson & Johnson from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Saturday, January 25th. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their price target on shares of Johnson & Johnson from $166.00 to $152.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, January 23rd. Sanford C. Bernstein reiterated a “market perform” rating on shares of Johnson & Johnson in a report on Wednesday, April 16th. Leerink Partners decreased their price objective on Johnson & Johnson from $182.00 to $169.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, January 23rd. Finally, Argus upgraded Johnson & Johnson to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Friday, January 24th. Nine equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have assigned a buy rating and three have issued a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $171.82.

Johnson & Johnson Price Performance

JNJ stock opened at $155.36 on Tuesday. The stock has a market capitalization of $373.81 billion, a PE ratio of 23.36, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.56 and a beta of 0.49. The company’s 50-day moving average is $159.43 and its 200-day moving average is $154.76. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.43, a current ratio of 1.11 and a quick ratio of 0.86. Johnson & Johnson has a 1 year low of $140.68 and a 1 year high of $169.99.

Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, April 15th. The company reported $2.77 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.59 by $0.18. The company had revenue of $21.89 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $21.65 billion. Johnson & Johnson had a net margin of 18.20% and a return on equity of 34.24%. Equities research analysts expect that Johnson & Johnson will post 10.58 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Johnson & Johnson Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, June 10th. Investors of record on Tuesday, May 27th will be given a $1.30 dividend. This is a boost from Johnson & Johnson’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.24. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, May 27th. This represents a $5.20 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.35%. Johnson & Johnson’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 57.84%.

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.