Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ) to Issue $1.24 Quarterly Dividend

Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ) announced a quarterly dividend on Thursday, January 2nd,RTT News reports. Investors of record on Tuesday, February 18th will be paid a dividend of 1.24 per share on Tuesday, March 4th. This represents a $4.96 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.43%.

Johnson & Johnson has raised its dividend by an average of 5.7% annually over the last three years and has raised its dividend every year for the last 63 years. Johnson & Johnson has a payout ratio of 46.9% indicating that its dividend is sufficiently covered by earnings. Equities research analysts expect Johnson & Johnson to earn $10.55 per share next year, which means the company should continue to be able to cover its $4.96 annual dividend with an expected future payout ratio of 47.0%.

Johnson & Johnson Price Performance

Johnson & Johnson stock opened at $144.62 on Thursday. The company has a market cap of $348.19 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.93, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.52 and a beta of 0.51. Johnson & Johnson has a one year low of $142.75 and a one year high of $168.85. The business has a fifty day moving average of $152.12 and a two-hundred day moving average of $156.23. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.45, a quick ratio of 0.79 and a current ratio of 1.03.

Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, October 15th. The company reported $2.42 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.21 by $0.21. Johnson & Johnson had a return on equity of 35.45% and a net margin of 19.14%. The company had revenue of $22.47 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $22.17 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $2.66 earnings per share. Johnson & Johnson’s revenue was up 5.2% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, analysts predict that Johnson & Johnson will post 9.94 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity at Johnson & Johnson

In other news, Director Mark A. Weinberger purchased 1,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, December 12th. The shares were bought at an average cost of $147.22 per share, for a total transaction of $147,220.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 1,000 shares in the company, valued at $147,220. This trade represents a ? increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. 0.16% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts recently commented on the company. Royal Bank of Canada lifted their price objective on Johnson & Johnson from $178.00 to $181.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 16th. Morgan Stanley increased their target price on Johnson & Johnson from $169.00 to $175.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 16th. Citigroup decreased their price target on shares of Johnson & Johnson from $185.00 to $175.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, December 11th. Bank of America reaffirmed a “neutral” rating and issued a $166.00 price objective on shares of Johnson & Johnson in a research report on Tuesday, December 10th. Finally, Wolfe Research initiated coverage on Johnson & Johnson in a research report on Friday, November 15th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $190.00 target price on the stock. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, seven have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Johnson & Johnson presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $174.73.

Johnson & Johnson Company Profile

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.