Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ) Receives Average Rating of “Hold” from Brokerages

Shares of Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ) have been assigned a consensus rating of “Hold” from the thirteen brokerages that are currently covering the company, Marketbeat Ratings reports. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation and six have assigned a buy recommendation to the company. The average twelve-month target price among brokers that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $173.21.

A number of brokerages have recently commented on JNJ. Daiwa America lowered shares of Johnson & Johnson from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, July 23rd. The Goldman Sachs Group decreased their price target on shares of Johnson & Johnson from $160.00 to $155.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, July 19th. Sanford C. Bernstein increased their price target on shares of Johnson & Johnson from $161.00 to $171.00 in a report on Thursday, July 18th. Morgan Stanley increased their price target on shares of Johnson & Johnson from $167.00 to $169.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Thursday, July 18th. Finally, TD Cowen cut their price objective on shares of Johnson & Johnson from $195.00 to $185.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, July 18th.

Johnson & Johnson Price Performance

JNJ opened at $159.60 on Thursday. The company has a market capitalization of $384.11 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 9.95, a PEG ratio of 2.63 and a beta of 0.52. The company has a quick ratio of 0.85, a current ratio of 1.07 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.44. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $152.63 and a 200-day moving average price of $153.07. Johnson & Johnson has a twelve month low of $143.13 and a twelve month high of $169.85.

Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 17th. The company reported $2.82 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.71 by $0.11. The company had revenue of $22.45 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $22.33 billion. Johnson & Johnson had a net margin of 46.34% and a return on equity of 36.60%. Johnson & Johnson’s revenue for the quarter was up 4.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $2.80 earnings per share. Equities analysts expect that Johnson & Johnson will post 10.07 EPS for the current year.

Johnson & Johnson Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 10th. Investors of record on Tuesday, August 27th will be issued a $1.24 dividend. This represents a $4.96 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.11%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, August 27th. Johnson & Johnson’s payout ratio is 30.92%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Johnson & Johnson

Several large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Citizens & Northern Corp raised its position in shares of Johnson & Johnson by 3.5% during the second quarter. Citizens & Northern Corp now owns 1,884 shares of the company’s stock valued at $275,000 after buying an additional 63 shares during the last quarter. Alliance Wealth Advisors LLC UT raised its position in shares of Johnson & Johnson by 1.4% during the fourth quarter. Alliance Wealth Advisors LLC UT now owns 4,714 shares of the company’s stock valued at $739,000 after buying an additional 64 shares during the last quarter. Carolinas Wealth Consulting LLC raised its position in shares of Johnson & Johnson by 0.4% during the fourth quarter. Carolinas Wealth Consulting LLC now owns 16,861 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,643,000 after buying an additional 64 shares during the last quarter. Epic Trust Investment Advisors LLC raised its position in shares of Johnson & Johnson by 3.6% during the second quarter. Epic Trust Investment Advisors LLC now owns 1,831 shares of the company’s stock valued at $268,000 after buying an additional 64 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Pine Harbor Wealth Management LLC raised its position in shares of Johnson & Johnson by 1.9% during the second quarter. Pine Harbor Wealth Management LLC now owns 3,472 shares of the company’s stock valued at $507,000 after buying an additional 64 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 69.55% of the company’s stock.

About Johnson & Johnson

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.