Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ) Reaches New 52-Week High – Still a Buy?

Shares of Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ) reached a new 52-week high during trading on Tuesday . The company traded as high as $251.71 and last traded at $248.6050, with a volume of 8884574 shares traded. The stock had previously closed at $248.43.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts have recently issued reports on JNJ shares. Scotiabank restated an “outperform” rating on shares of Johnson & Johnson in a research note on Thursday, January 22nd. The Goldman Sachs Group restated a “buy” rating and set a $250.00 price objective on shares of Johnson & Johnson in a research report on Thursday, January 22nd. UBS Group restated a “buy” rating on shares of Johnson & Johnson in a report on Monday, January 5th. Barclays increased their target price on Johnson & Johnson from $197.00 to $217.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, December 30th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus lifted their price objective on shares of Johnson & Johnson from $205.00 to $220.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 22nd. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seventeen have issued a Buy rating and nine have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Johnson & Johnson has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $232.70.

Johnson & Johnson Price Performance

The company has a quick ratio of 0.77, a current ratio of 1.03 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.48. The stock has a market capitalization of $599.11 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.50, a P/E/G ratio of 2.41 and a beta of 0.34. The business’s 50 day simple moving average is $225.50 and its 200-day simple moving average is $202.52.

Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Saturday, January 31st. The company reported $2.46 earnings per share for the quarter. The company had revenue of $24.28 billion during the quarter. Johnson & Johnson had a net margin of 28.46% and a return on equity of 33.04%. On average, research analysts forecast that Johnson & Johnson will post 10.58 earnings per share for the current year.

Johnson & Johnson Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, March 10th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, February 24th will be paid a $1.30 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, February 24th. This represents a $5.20 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.1%. Johnson & Johnson’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 47.06%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Johnson & Johnson

In related news, EVP Vanessa Broadhurst sold 6,197 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $243.39, for a total value of $1,508,287.83. Following the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 23,003 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $5,598,700.17. This trade represents a 21.22% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, EVP Timothy Schmid sold 1,322 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $245.66, for a total value of $324,762.52. Following the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 25,447 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $6,251,310.02. The trade was a 4.94% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 30,142 shares of company stock valued at $7,360,528. 0.16% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Trading of Johnson & Johnson

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Brighton Jones LLC boosted its stake in shares of Johnson & Johnson by 13.9% during the fourth quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 51,876 shares of the company’s stock valued at $7,502,000 after purchasing an additional 6,332 shares in the last quarter. United Bank boosted its position in Johnson & Johnson by 110.7% during the 1st quarter. United Bank now owns 9,279 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,539,000 after buying an additional 4,876 shares during the period. Sivia Capital Partners LLC grew its holdings in Johnson & Johnson by 13.4% during the 2nd quarter. Sivia Capital Partners LLC now owns 5,863 shares of the company’s stock worth $896,000 after acquiring an additional 692 shares during the last quarter. Wealth Group Ltd. increased its position in Johnson & Johnson by 12.8% in the 2nd quarter. Wealth Group Ltd. now owns 1,482 shares of the company’s stock valued at $226,000 after acquiring an additional 168 shares during the period. Finally, Matrix Asset Advisors Inc. NY raised its stake in shares of Johnson & Johnson by 6.5% during the second quarter. Matrix Asset Advisors Inc. NY now owns 3,595 shares of the company’s stock valued at $549,000 after acquiring an additional 220 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 69.55% of the company’s stock.

About Johnson & Johnson

Johnson & Johnson is a multinational healthcare company headquartered in New Brunswick, New Jersey, that develops, manufactures and markets a broad range of products across pharmaceuticals, medical devices and previously consumer health. Founded in 1886 by the Johnson family, the company has grown into a global healthcare organization with operations and sales in many countries around the world.

The company’s pharmaceuticals business, organized largely under its Janssen research and development organization, focuses on prescription medicines across therapeutic areas such as immunology, infectious disease, oncology and neuroscience.