Short Interest in Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ) Declines By 14.3%

Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ) saw a significant decline in short interest during the month of September. As of September 30th, there was short interest totalling 19,740,000 shares, a decline of 14.3% from the September 15th total of 23,030,000 shares. Based on an average trading volume of 6,550,000 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 3.0 days. Approximately 0.8% of the company’s shares are sold short.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

JNJ has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. Daiwa America downgraded shares of Johnson & Johnson from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 23rd. Cantor Fitzgerald reissued an “overweight” rating and issued a $215.00 price objective on shares of Johnson & Johnson in a research note on Thursday, October 10th. Royal Bank of Canada upped their target price on Johnson & Johnson from $178.00 to $181.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday. Morgan Stanley raised their price target on Johnson & Johnson from $169.00 to $175.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Wednesday. Finally, TD Securities cut their price objective on Johnson & Johnson from $195.00 to $185.00 in a research report on Thursday, July 18th. Six analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, six have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Johnson & Johnson currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $175.00.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, VP Robert J. Decker sold 5,635 shares of Johnson & Johnson stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, August 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $165.06, for a total value of $930,113.10. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now owns 18,973 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,131,683.38. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. 0.16% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Johnson & Johnson

A number of large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in JNJ. Meridian Financial Partners LLC acquired a new position in Johnson & Johnson during the 2nd quarter valued at about $1,626,000. Summit Financial Wealth Advisors LLC grew its holdings in shares of Johnson & Johnson by 26.3% during the first quarter. Summit Financial Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 5,392 shares of the company’s stock valued at $853,000 after buying an additional 1,122 shares during the last quarter. Franklin Parlapiano Turner & Welch LLC increased its position in shares of Johnson & Johnson by 0.7% in the 1st quarter. Franklin Parlapiano Turner & Welch LLC now owns 47,186 shares of the company’s stock valued at $7,464,000 after acquiring an additional 325 shares during the period. Capital Asset Advisory Services LLC lifted its position in Johnson & Johnson by 8.8% during the 1st quarter. Capital Asset Advisory Services LLC now owns 26,539 shares of the company’s stock worth $4,044,000 after acquiring an additional 2,151 shares during the period. Finally, NTV Asset Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of Johnson & Johnson by 1.6% in the first quarter. NTV Asset Management LLC now owns 36,000 shares of the company’s stock valued at $5,695,000 after purchasing an additional 565 shares during the period. 69.55% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Johnson & Johnson Stock Up 0.1 %

NYSE JNJ traded up $0.18 during trading on Wednesday, reaching $164.28. 1,174,424 shares of the company’s stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 7,020,750. Johnson & Johnson has a 12-month low of $143.13 and a 12-month high of $168.85. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.44, a current ratio of 1.07 and a quick ratio of 0.85. The firm has a market cap of $395.37 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.25, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.65 and a beta of 0.52. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $162.70 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $154.52.

Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, October 15th. The company reported $2.42 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.21 by $0.21. The company had revenue of $22.47 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $22.17 billion. Johnson & Johnson had a net margin of 46.34% and a return on equity of 36.60%. Johnson & Johnson’s revenue was up 5.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the company posted $2.66 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Johnson & Johnson will post 10 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Johnson & Johnson Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 10th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, November 26th will be paid a $1.24 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, November 26th. This represents a $4.96 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.02%. Johnson & Johnson’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 30.92%.

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.