Apella Capital LLC Raises Stock Holdings in Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ)

Apella Capital LLC boosted its position in Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ) by 3.2% in the third quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 23,987 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 752 shares during the quarter. Apella Capital LLC’s holdings in Johnson & Johnson were worth $3,866,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. Innealta Capital LLC acquired a new position in Johnson & Johnson during the 2nd quarter valued at about $27,000. Vermillion & White Wealth Management Group LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Johnson & Johnson during the fourth quarter worth $44,000. MFA Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Johnson & Johnson during the second quarter valued at $43,000. Grayhawk Investment Strategies Inc. increased its position in shares of Johnson & Johnson by 528.6% in the 4th quarter. Grayhawk Investment Strategies Inc. now owns 308 shares of the company’s stock valued at $48,000 after acquiring an additional 259 shares during the period. Finally, Fairfield Financial Advisors LTD purchased a new position in Johnson & Johnson in the 2nd quarter worth $46,000. 69.55% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Johnson & Johnson Trading Down 0.4 %

Shares of NYSE:JNJ opened at $160.50 on Friday. 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 capitalization of $386.27 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.01, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.69 and a beta of 0.53. Johnson & Johnson has a 1 year low of $143.13 and a 1 year high of $168.85. The business’s 50 day moving average price is $162.61 and its 200-day moving average price is $154.30.

Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 17th. The company reported $2.82 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.71 by $0.11. Johnson & Johnson had a net margin of 46.34% and a return on equity of 36.60%. The firm had revenue of $22.45 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $22.33 billion. During the same period last year, the company posted $2.80 EPS. Johnson & Johnson’s quarterly revenue was up 4.3% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Johnson & Johnson will post 10.02 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Johnson & Johnson Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, September 10th. Investors of record on Tuesday, August 27th were given a dividend of $1.24 per share. This represents a $4.96 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.09%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, August 27th. Johnson & Johnson’s payout ratio is 30.92%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts have weighed in on JNJ shares. Daiwa America downgraded Johnson & Johnson from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 23rd. Sanford C. Bernstein boosted their target price on shares of Johnson & Johnson from $161.00 to $171.00 in a research report on Thursday, July 18th. Morgan Stanley increased their price target on Johnson & Johnson from $167.00 to $169.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Thursday, July 18th. TD Securities decreased their price objective on Johnson & Johnson from $195.00 to $185.00 in a report on Thursday, July 18th. Finally, StockNews.com raised Johnson & Johnson from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Saturday, September 14th. Seven 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 stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Johnson & Johnson has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $173.21.

Insider Activity at Johnson & Johnson

In other Johnson & Johnson news, VP Robert J. Decker sold 5,635 shares of Johnson & Johnson stock in a transaction on Friday, August 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $165.06, for a total transaction of $930,113.10. Following the sale, the vice president now owns 18,973 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,131,683.38. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. 0.16% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

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.