Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ) Stock Price Up 2.9% – Time to Buy?

Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ) shares shot up 2.9% during mid-day trading on Thursday . The stock traded as high as $160.12 and last traded at $159.92. 4,360,377 shares traded hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 44% from the average session volume of 7,725,499 shares. The stock had previously closed at $155.36.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

JNJ has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. Stifel Nicolaus reduced their price target on shares of Johnson & Johnson from $170.00 to $155.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, January 23rd. Raymond James decreased their target price on shares of Johnson & Johnson from $170.00 to $165.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, January 23rd. Royal Bank of Canada restated an “outperform” rating and set a $181.00 price target on shares of Johnson & Johnson in a research report on Wednesday. Guggenheim reiterated a “neutral” rating on shares of Johnson & Johnson in a report on Wednesday. Finally, Barclays raised their price target on Johnson & Johnson from $159.00 to $166.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 28th. Nine equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have issued a buy rating and two have issued a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $171.33.

Johnson & Johnson Price Performance

The stock has a market cap of $385.33 billion, a PE ratio of 24.04, a P/E/G ratio of 2.56 and a beta of 0.47. The company has a current ratio of 1.11, a quick ratio of 0.86 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.43. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $159.36 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $155.98.

Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, January 22nd. The company reported $2.04 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.99 by $0.05. Johnson & Johnson had a net margin of 18.20% and a return on equity of 34.24%. The firm had revenue of $22.52 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $22.44 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $2.29 EPS. The company’s revenue was up 5.3% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts forecast that Johnson & Johnson will post 10.58 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, VP Robert J. Decker sold 6,999 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $165.88, for a total transaction of $1,160,994.12. Following the sale, the vice president now directly owns 21,001 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $3,483,645.88. This represents a 25.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Timothy Schmid sold 403 shares of Johnson & Johnson stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $156.15, for a total transaction of $62,928.45. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 15,098 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,357,552.70. This trade represents a 2.60 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.16% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Johnson & Johnson

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in JNJ. IFS Advisors LLC raised its stake in shares of Johnson & Johnson by 138.9% in the fourth quarter. IFS Advisors LLC now owns 172 shares of the company’s stock worth $25,000 after purchasing an additional 100 shares during the last quarter. WealthTrak Capital Management LLC bought a new position in Johnson & Johnson during the 4th quarter valued at about $26,000. Mountain Hill Investment Partners Corp. bought a new stake in shares of Johnson & Johnson in the fourth quarter worth approximately $29,000. Bay Harbor Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Johnson & Johnson during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $32,000. Finally, Conquis Financial LLC bought a new position in Johnson & Johnson during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $33,000. Institutional investors own 69.55% of the company’s stock.

About Johnson & Johnson

Johnson & Johnson is a holding company, which engages in the research, development, manufacture, and sale of products in the healthcare field. It operates through the Innovative Medicine and MedTech segments. The Innovative Medicine segment focuses on immunology, infectious diseases, neuroscience, oncology, cardiovascular and metabolism, and pulmonary hypertension.