Townsquare Capital LLC Buys 14,185 Shares of Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ)

Townsquare Capital LLC boosted its position in shares of Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ) by 12.9% during the third quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 123,812 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 14,185 shares during the period. Townsquare Capital LLC’s holdings in Johnson & Johnson were worth $20,065,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of JNJ. Transamerica Financial Advisors Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Johnson & Johnson by 178.9% in the third quarter. Transamerica Financial Advisors Inc. now owns 10,458 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,695,000 after acquiring an additional 6,708 shares during the last quarter. Shum Financial Group Inc. acquired a new position in Johnson & Johnson in the 3rd quarter worth about $2,305,000. Avestar Capital LLC raised its position in Johnson & Johnson by 19.2% in the third quarter. Avestar Capital LLC now owns 13,090 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,121,000 after purchasing an additional 2,110 shares during the last quarter. Covington Investment Advisors Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Johnson & Johnson by 1.0% during the third quarter. Covington Investment Advisors Inc. now owns 54,296 shares of the company’s stock worth $8,799,000 after purchasing an additional 521 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Prospector Partners LLC increased its stake in shares of Johnson & Johnson by 0.8% in the third quarter. Prospector Partners LLC now owns 66,647 shares of the company’s stock valued at $10,801,000 after buying an additional 513 shares during the period. 69.55% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms have weighed in on JNJ. StockNews.com raised shares of Johnson & Johnson from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Saturday, September 14th. Wells Fargo & Company raised their target price on Johnson & Johnson from $163.00 to $166.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 16th. Royal Bank of Canada upped their price target on Johnson & Johnson from $178.00 to $181.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 16th. Wolfe Research started coverage on Johnson & Johnson in a research note on Friday, November 15th. They issued an “outperform” rating and a $190.00 price objective on the stock. Finally, Cantor Fitzgerald reissued an “overweight” rating and set a $215.00 target price on shares of Johnson & Johnson in a research report on Wednesday, October 16th. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $175.94.

Insider Transactions at Johnson & Johnson

In related news, VP Robert J. Decker sold 5,635 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred 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 directly owns 18,973 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,131,683.38. This represents a 22.90 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. 0.16% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Johnson & Johnson Trading Down 0.8 %

NYSE JNJ opened at $154.51 on Wednesday. The stock has a market capitalization of $372.00 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.36, a PEG ratio of 2.77 and a beta of 0.53. The business’s fifty day moving average is $159.73 and its 200-day moving average is $156.39. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.45, a current ratio of 1.03 and a quick ratio of 0.79. Johnson & Johnson has a one year low of $143.13 and a one year high of $168.85.

Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, October 15th. The company reported $2.42 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.21 by $0.21. The firm had revenue of $22.47 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $22.17 billion. Johnson & Johnson had a net margin of 19.14% and a return on equity of 35.45%. The company’s revenue was up 5.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $2.66 EPS. Equities research analysts predict that Johnson & Johnson will post 9.93 EPS for the current year.

Johnson & Johnson Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 10th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, November 26th will be given a dividend of $1.24 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, November 26th. This represents a $4.96 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.21%. Johnson & Johnson’s dividend payout ratio is presently 71.78%.

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.