ELCO Management Co. LLC Reduces Stake in Johnson & Johnson $JNJ

ELCO Management Co. LLC lowered its holdings in Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ) by 2.6% during the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 3,953 shares of the company’s stock after selling 105 shares during the quarter. ELCO Management Co. LLC’s holdings in Johnson & Johnson were worth $604,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. GFG Capital LLC purchased a new position in Johnson & Johnson during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $35,000. Stone House Investment Management LLC purchased a new position in Johnson & Johnson during the 1st quarter worth approximately $47,000. 1248 Management LLC purchased a new position in Johnson & Johnson during the 1st quarter worth approximately $48,000. von Borstel & Associates Inc. purchased a new position in Johnson & Johnson during the 1st quarter worth approximately $49,000. Finally, Harvest Fund Management Co. Ltd purchased a new position in Johnson & Johnson during the 1st quarter worth approximately $52,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 69.55% of the company’s stock.

Johnson & Johnson Stock Down 1.8%

JNJ opened at $186.94 on Wednesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.50, a current ratio of 1.07 and a quick ratio of 0.80. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $182.72 and a 200-day simple moving average of $166.92. The stock has a market capitalization of $450.40 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.04, a P/E/G ratio of 2.24 and a beta of 0.40. Johnson & Johnson has a 12 month low of $140.68 and a 12 month high of $194.48.

Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, August 30th. The company reported $2.26 EPS for the quarter. The business had revenue of $24.02 billion during the quarter. Johnson & Johnson had a return on equity of 32.73% and a net margin of 27.26%. On average, equities analysts anticipate that Johnson & Johnson will post 10.58 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Johnson & Johnson Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 9th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, November 25th will be issued a $1.30 dividend. This represents a $5.20 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.8%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, November 25th. Johnson & Johnson’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 50.19%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts recently issued reports on JNJ shares. Sanford C. Bernstein raised their price target on Johnson & Johnson from $172.00 to $193.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research note on Monday, October 6th. Citigroup raised their price target on Johnson & Johnson from $213.00 to $215.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 15th. HSBC lifted their target price on Johnson & Johnson from $210.00 to $215.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 16th. Daiwa America upgraded Johnson & Johnson from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Monday, October 20th. Finally, Raymond James Financial lifted their target price on Johnson & Johnson from $174.00 to $209.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 15th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fourteen have issued a Buy rating and nine have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Johnson & Johnson has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $199.05.

Insider Activity at Johnson & Johnson

In other news, EVP Jennifer L. Taubert sold 56,471 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, September 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $177.81, for a total value of $10,041,108.51. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 178,013 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $31,652,491.53. This trade represents a 24.08% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. 0.16% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Johnson & Johnson Company Profile

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.