Handelsbanken Fonder AB Grows Position in Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ)

Handelsbanken Fonder AB boosted its stake in Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ) by 2.7% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 1,541,425 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 39,826 shares during the quarter. Johnson & Johnson makes up 0.9% of Handelsbanken Fonder AB’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 15th largest holding. Handelsbanken Fonder AB’s holdings in Johnson & Johnson were worth $222,921,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the stock. Mcdaniel Terry & Co. grew its stake in Johnson & Johnson by 5.3% in the 4th quarter. Mcdaniel Terry & Co. now owns 194,783 shares of the company’s stock valued at $28,170,000 after purchasing an additional 9,780 shares during the period. Wealth Alliance grew its stake in Johnson & Johnson by 14.5% in the 4th quarter. Wealth Alliance now owns 16,836 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,435,000 after purchasing an additional 2,127 shares during the period. Sunpointe LLC grew its stake in Johnson & Johnson by 251.1% in the 4th quarter. Sunpointe LLC now owns 15,298 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,212,000 after purchasing an additional 10,941 shares during the period. LMG Wealth Partners LLC grew its stake in Johnson & Johnson by 2.4% in the 4th quarter. LMG Wealth Partners LLC now owns 27,869 shares of the company’s stock valued at $4,030,000 after purchasing an additional 640 shares during the period. Finally, Corps Capital Advisors LLC bought a new position in Johnson & Johnson in the 4th quarter valued at $931,000. 69.55% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages have issued reports on JNJ. Barclays upped their price objective on Johnson & Johnson from $159.00 to $166.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 28th. Royal Bank of Canada reiterated an “outperform” rating and set a $181.00 price target on shares of Johnson & Johnson in a research note on Wednesday, February 19th. Bank of America cut their price target on Johnson & Johnson from $160.00 to $159.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, January 23rd. Leerink Partners cut their price target on Johnson & Johnson from $182.00 to $169.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, January 23rd. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company cut their price target on Johnson & Johnson from $166.00 to $152.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, January 23rd. Nine investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have given a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $170.67.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, EVP Timothy Schmid sold 403 shares of Johnson & Johnson 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 sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 15,098 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,357,552.70. This trade represents a 2.60 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, Director Mark A. Weinberger acquired 1,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated 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 completion of the transaction, the director now owns 1,000 shares in the company, valued at approximately $147,220. The trade was a ∞ increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Insiders own 0.16% of the company’s stock.

Johnson & Johnson Stock Performance

NYSE:JNJ opened at $162.35 on Monday. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $148.93 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $155.86. Johnson & Johnson has a twelve month low of $140.68 and a twelve month high of $168.85. The stock has a market cap of $390.87 billion, a P/E ratio of 24.41, a PEG ratio of 2.56 and a beta of 0.52. The company has a quick ratio of 0.86, a current ratio of 1.11 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.43.

Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ) last announced its quarterly earnings data 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. The company had revenue of $22.52 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $22.44 billion. Johnson & Johnson had a return on equity of 34.24% and a net margin of 18.20%. Johnson & Johnson’s revenue for the quarter was up 5.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the firm posted $2.29 EPS. As a group, equities analysts predict that Johnson & Johnson will post 10.58 EPS for the current fiscal 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 $1.24 dividend. 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 dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 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.