Johnson & Johnson $JNJ Shares Sold by Rathbones Group PLC

Rathbones Group PLC cut its holdings in Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ) by 5.7% during the third quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The institutional investor owned 801,879 shares of the company’s stock after selling 48,779 shares during the period. Rathbones Group PLC’s holdings in Johnson & Johnson were worth $148,684,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in JNJ. AustralianSuper Pty Ltd raised its holdings in Johnson & Johnson by 632.0% during the third quarter. AustralianSuper Pty Ltd now owns 89,183 shares of the company’s stock worth $16,536,000 after purchasing an additional 77,000 shares in the last quarter. J.W. Cole Advisors Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Johnson & Johnson by 2.2% in the 3rd quarter. J.W. Cole Advisors Inc. now owns 130,934 shares of the company’s stock valued at $24,278,000 after buying an additional 2,769 shares in the last quarter. Guinness Asset Management LTD grew its position in shares of Johnson & Johnson by 0.4% in the 3rd quarter. Guinness Asset Management LTD now owns 1,383,195 shares of the company’s stock valued at $251,216,000 after buying an additional 5,994 shares during the last quarter. Treasurer of the State of North Carolina grew its position in shares of Johnson & Johnson by 8.3% in the 2nd quarter. Treasurer of the State of North Carolina now owns 1,234,945 shares of the company’s stock valued at $188,638,000 after buying an additional 94,957 shares during the last quarter. Finally, National Pension Service lifted its position in Johnson & Johnson by 3.2% in the third quarter. National Pension Service now owns 4,926,569 shares of the company’s stock valued at $913,484,000 after acquiring an additional 151,707 shares during the last quarter. 69.55% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, EVP Timothy Schmid sold 22,623 shares of Johnson & Johnson stock in a transaction on Wednesday, February 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $244.33, for a total value of $5,527,477.59. Following the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 26,769 shares in the company, valued at $6,540,469.77. This trade represents a 45.80% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, EVP Vanessa Broadhurst sold 6,197 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $243.39, for a total transaction of $1,508,287.83. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president directly owned 23,003 shares in the company, valued at $5,598,700.17. This represents a 21.22% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. In the last three months, insiders sold 30,142 shares of company stock worth $7,360,528. Corporate insiders own 0.16% of the company’s stock.

Johnson & Johnson Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:JNJ opened at $240.57 on Friday. Johnson & Johnson has a one year low of $141.50 and a one year high of $251.71. The stock has a market capitalization of $579.75 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.77, a PEG ratio of 2.37 and a beta of 0.34. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $228.36 and a 200-day simple moving average of $204.19. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.48, a quick ratio of 0.77 and a current ratio of 1.03.

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

Johnson & Johnson Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, March 10th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, February 24th will be paid a $1.30 dividend. This represents a $5.20 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.2%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, February 24th. Johnson & Johnson’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 47.06%.

Key Headlines Impacting Johnson & Johnson

Here are the key news stories impacting Johnson & Johnson this week:

• Positive Sentiment: FDA approval of TECVAYLI® plus DARZALEX FASPRO® for relapsed/refractory multiple myeloma — approval was based on strong Phase 3 results showing significant improvements in progression?free and overall survival, and J&J positions the combo as a potential new standard of care as early as second line. This materially expands the company’s oncology commercial opportunity and is the main catalyst lifting sentiment. PR Newswire: J&J FDA approval
• Positive Sentiment: Inclusion in dividend lists / dividend?aristocrat coverage — recent articles cite JNJ among Dividend Kings/Aristocrats, reinforcing its appeal to income and defensive investors given decades of payout growth. That supports demand from dividend?focused funds and conservative investors. 24/7 Wall St.: Dividend Kings
• Neutral Sentiment: JPMorgan raised its price target from $225 to $250 but kept a “neutral” rating — the PT lift signals modest analyst upside recognition of recent catalysts, though the unchanged rating tempers near?term conviction. Benzinga: JPMorgan price target
• Neutral Sentiment: Direct?to?consumer website launch — J&J rolled out a site to sell certain drugs directly to U.S. patients who are uninsured or pay out?of?pocket; potential to improve access and margin over time, but impact on revenue is unclear near term. Reuters: direct-to-consumer site
• Negative Sentiment: $65 million Tracleer antitrust settlement — two J&J units agreed to pay $65M to resolve a class action alleging overcharges for the pulmonary hypertension drug; materiality is modest relative to J&J’s scale but it is a headline legal expense. Reuters: Tracleer settlement
• Negative Sentiment: Near?term price volatility / recent pullback — a few market reports noted a day?over?day decline ahead of the approval news; investors should be prepared for swings as the market digests launch timing, uptake and reimbursement dynamics. Zacks: recent decline

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts have issued reports on the stock. Stifel Nicolaus upped their price objective on shares of Johnson & Johnson from $205.00 to $220.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 22nd. Barclays boosted their target price on Johnson & Johnson from $197.00 to $217.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Tuesday, December 30th. Leerink Partners raised their price target on Johnson & Johnson from $201.00 to $232.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 22nd. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Johnson & Johnson in a research report on Wednesday, January 28th. Finally, Rothschild & Co Redburn boosted their price objective on Johnson & Johnson from $180.00 to $210.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 19th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seventeen have issued a Buy rating and nine have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $234.87.

Johnson & Johnson Company Profile

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.