Avalon Capital Management Reduces Stock Holdings in Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ)

Avalon Capital Management decreased its position in Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ) by 15.9% during the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 3,059 shares of the company’s stock after selling 580 shares during the period. Avalon Capital Management’s holdings in Johnson & Johnson were worth $447,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of JNJ. Christopher J. Hasenberg Inc purchased a new stake in shares of Johnson & Johnson during the first quarter worth $31,000. WFA Asset Management Corp lifted its position in shares of Johnson & Johnson by 61.4% during the fourth quarter. WFA Asset Management Corp now owns 255 shares of the company’s stock worth $40,000 after acquiring an additional 97 shares in the last quarter. MFA Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Johnson & Johnson during the second quarter worth $43,000. Vermillion & White Wealth Management Group LLC bought a new position in shares of Johnson & Johnson in the fourth quarter worth $44,000. Finally, Disciplined Equity Management Inc. bought a new position in shares of Johnson & Johnson in the fourth quarter worth $45,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 69.55% of the company’s stock.

Johnson & Johnson Trading Up 1.1 %

NYSE JNJ traded up $1.78 during trading on Friday, hitting $164.13. 7,093,429 shares of the company’s stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 7,299,449. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $153.92 and a two-hundred day moving average of $153.27. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.44, a current ratio of 1.07 and a quick ratio of 0.85. Johnson & Johnson has a 12-month low of $143.13 and a 12-month high of $167.78. The firm has a market cap of $395.01 billion, a P/E ratio of 10.23, a PEG ratio of 2.63 and a beta of 0.52.

Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 17th. The company reported $2.82 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.71 by $0.11. The business had revenue of $22.45 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $22.33 billion. Johnson & Johnson had a net margin of 46.34% and a return on equity of 36.60%. The company’s revenue was up 4.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $2.80 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that Johnson & Johnson will post 10.07 EPS for the current year.

Johnson & Johnson Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 10th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, August 27th will be issued a $1.24 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, August 27th. This represents a $4.96 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.02%. Johnson & Johnson’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 30.92%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms have recently weighed in on JNJ. Sanford C. Bernstein upped their price target on shares of Johnson & Johnson from $161.00 to $171.00 in a report on Thursday, July 18th. Morgan Stanley upped their price target on shares of Johnson & Johnson from $167.00 to $169.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Thursday, July 18th. Royal Bank of Canada reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and issued a $175.00 price target on shares of Johnson & Johnson in a report on Tuesday, July 30th. Daiwa America cut Johnson & Johnson from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 23rd. Finally, TD Securities reduced their target price on Johnson & Johnson from $195.00 to $185.00 in a research note on Thursday, July 18th. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, six have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $173.21.

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.