Sepio Capital LP Sells 5,975 Shares of Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ)

Sepio Capital LP reduced its position in shares of Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ) by 16.5% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 30,187 shares of the company’s stock after selling 5,975 shares during the quarter. Sepio Capital LP’s holdings in Johnson & Johnson were worth $4,731,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other large investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Keener Financial Planning LLC bought a new stake in shares of Johnson & Johnson during the 4th quarter valued at about $40,000. Tower View Wealth Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Johnson & Johnson by 183.3% during the 3rd quarter. Tower View Wealth Management LLC now owns 255 shares of the company’s stock valued at $40,000 after purchasing an additional 165 shares during the period. WFA Asset Management Corp grew its stake in shares of Johnson & Johnson by 61.4% during the 4th quarter. WFA Asset Management Corp now owns 255 shares of the company’s stock valued at $40,000 after purchasing an additional 97 shares during the period. Disciplined Equity Management Inc. bought a new position in shares of Johnson & Johnson during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $45,000. Finally, Altshuler Shaham Ltd grew its stake in shares of Johnson & Johnson by 37.8% during the 3rd quarter. Altshuler Shaham Ltd now owns 317 shares of the company’s stock valued at $49,000 after acquiring an additional 87 shares during the period. 69.55% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages recently issued reports on JNJ. Royal Bank of Canada reiterated an “outperform” rating and set a $175.00 price objective on shares of Johnson & Johnson in a research note on Wednesday. Morgan Stanley cut their price objective on Johnson & Johnson from $168.00 to $167.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, April 17th. StockNews.com upgraded Johnson & Johnson from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 6th. Bank of America cut their price objective on Johnson & Johnson from $180.00 to $170.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, April 17th. Finally, HSBC upgraded Johnson & Johnson from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and boosted their price objective for the company from $169.00 to $170.00 in a research note on Thursday, April 18th. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, six have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Johnson & Johnson presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $175.86.

Johnson & Johnson Price Performance

Shares of JNJ traded down $2.73 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $146.97. 9,520,576 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 7,234,254. The company has a market cap of $353.71 billion, a PE ratio of 9.16, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.49 and a beta of 0.55. Johnson & Johnson has a 52-week low of $143.13 and a 52-week high of $175.97. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $151.31 and a two-hundred day moving average of $155.04. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.36, a quick ratio of 0.94 and a current ratio of 1.17.

Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, April 16th. The company reported $2.71 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.64 by $0.07. The business had revenue of $21.38 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $21.39 billion. Johnson & Johnson had a return on equity of 36.70% and a net margin of 45.26%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 2.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $2.68 EPS. On average, equities analysts predict that Johnson & Johnson will post 10.64 earnings per share for the current year.

Johnson & Johnson Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, June 4th. Investors of record on Tuesday, May 21st will be issued a dividend of $1.24 per share. This represents a $4.96 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.37%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, May 20th. This is a positive change from Johnson & Johnson’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.19. Johnson & Johnson’s dividend payout ratio is presently 30.92%.

Johnson & Johnson Company 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.