Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ) Stock Price Down 0.2% – Here’s Why

Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ) traded down 0.2% during trading on Friday . The company traded as low as $154.17 and last traded at $155.16. 2,247,368 shares were traded during trading, a decline of 68% from the average session volume of 7,035,555 shares. The stock had previously closed at $155.40.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts recently issued reports on JNJ shares. Cantor Fitzgerald reiterated an “overweight” rating and issued a $215.00 price objective on shares of Johnson & Johnson in a research report on Wednesday, October 16th. Guggenheim upped their price target on shares of Johnson & Johnson from $156.00 to $162.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, November 6th. Royal Bank of Canada raised their price objective on shares of Johnson & Johnson from $178.00 to $181.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 16th. Morgan Stanley upped their target price on shares of Johnson & Johnson from $169.00 to $175.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 16th. Finally, Citigroup lifted their price target on Johnson & Johnson from $180.00 to $185.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 16th. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $175.94.

Johnson & Johnson Stock Performance

The stock has a market capitalization of $373.21 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.43, a P/E/G ratio of 2.76 and a beta of 0.53. The company has a quick ratio of 0.79, a current ratio of 1.03 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.45. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $159.15 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $156.44.

Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, October 15th. The company reported $2.42 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.21 by $0.21. The company had revenue of $22.47 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $22.17 billion. Johnson & Johnson had a net margin of 19.14% and a return on equity of 35.45%. Johnson & Johnson’s quarterly revenue was up 5.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $2.66 EPS. On average, equities analysts forecast that Johnson & Johnson will post 9.93 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Johnson & Johnson Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 10th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, November 26th will be issued a $1.24 dividend. This represents a $4.96 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.20%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, November 26th. Johnson & Johnson’s dividend payout ratio is currently 71.78%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Johnson & Johnson

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. State Street Corp boosted its position in Johnson & Johnson by 0.9% in the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 134,245,811 shares of the company’s stock valued at $21,755,874,000 after buying an additional 1,154,088 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of Johnson & Johnson by 1.8% in the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 56,106,884 shares of the company’s stock valued at $9,064,149,000 after acquiring an additional 1,004,763 shares during the last quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA grew its position in Johnson & Johnson by 10.8% during the 2nd quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 18,780,645 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,744,979,000 after acquiring an additional 1,831,751 shares during the last quarter. FMR LLC increased its holdings in Johnson & Johnson by 7.4% in the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 18,316,920 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,968,440,000 after purchasing an additional 1,265,748 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. raised its position in Johnson & Johnson by 0.6% in the third quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 17,639,368 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,858,543,000 after purchasing an additional 102,502 shares during the last quarter. 69.55% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

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.