Ferguson Wellman Capital Management Inc. Has $114.65 Million Stake in Johnson & Johnson $JNJ

Ferguson Wellman Capital Management Inc. grew its holdings in Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ) by 75.3% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 469,028 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 201,519 shares during the quarter. Johnson & Johnson accounts for about 1.6% of Ferguson Wellman Capital Management Inc.’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 20th largest holding. Ferguson Wellman Capital Management Inc.’s holdings in Johnson & Johnson were worth $114,649,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Auto Owners Insurance Co increased its stake in Johnson & Johnson by 22,225.6% during the 4th quarter. Auto Owners Insurance Co now owns 69,419,308 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,436,633,000 after purchasing an additional 69,108,368 shares in the last quarter. Norges Bank bought a new position in Johnson & Johnson in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $6,924,523,000. Capital World Investors acquired a new position in shares of Johnson & Johnson in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $2,005,942,000. Diamant Asset Management Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Johnson & Johnson by 24,436.5% in the first quarter. Diamant Asset Management Inc. now owns 4,473,008 shares of the company’s stock valued at $109,338,000 after buying an additional 4,454,778 shares during the period. Finally, Vanguard Group Inc. increased its position in shares of Johnson & Johnson by 1.6% during the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 240,349,660 shares of the company’s stock worth $49,740,362,000 after acquiring an additional 3,731,074 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 69.55% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms recently commented on JNJ. The Goldman Sachs Group boosted their price objective on shares of Johnson & Johnson from $265.00 to $275.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 15th. Leerink Partners raised Johnson & Johnson from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $265.00 price target on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, May 13th. Sanford C. Bernstein boosted their price target on Johnson & Johnson from $225.00 to $251.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a report on Wednesday, April 15th. Argus increased their price objective on Johnson & Johnson from $240.00 to $275.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, April 16th. Finally, Morgan Stanley lifted their target price on Johnson & Johnson from $283.00 to $284.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 8th. Twenty investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and seven have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $261.26.

Insider Activity

In related news, EVP Kathryn E. Wengel sold 10,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, June 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $241.15, for a total transaction of $2,411,500.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president owned 114,288 shares in the company, valued at approximately $27,560,551.20. This represents a 8.05% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 0.16% of the company’s stock.

Key Headlines Impacting Johnson & Johnson

Here are the key news stories impacting Johnson & Johnson this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Royal Bank of Canada raised its price target on Johnson & Johnson (JNJ) to $287 from $265 and kept an outperform rating, implying additional upside as investors look ahead to earnings. Benzinga
• Positive Sentiment: Several market watchers highlighted JNJ as a potential buy before earnings, pointing to its strong year-to-date move, recent all-time highs, and the appeal of its dividend as capital rotates into healthcare names. The Real Case for Buying Johnson & Johnson (JNJ) Before July 15
• Positive Sentiment: Analysts and stock commentary remain focused on JNJ’s upcoming quarterly results, with expectations centered on continued operational strength despite patent and competitive headwinds. Zacks: Is JNJ Stock a Buy, Sell or Hold Ahead of Q2 Earnings Release?
• Neutral Sentiment: Broader market weakness weighed on Wall Street Monday, which could limit gains even for defensive names like JNJ. NASDAQ Snaps 3-Day Winning Streak as Oil Jumps Amid US-Iran Tensions
• Neutral Sentiment: Pre-earnings previews from Zacks, TipRanks, and Barron’s kept Johnson & Johnson in focus, but these pieces were mainly commentary ahead of the report rather than new company-specific catalysts. Zacks: Is Johnson & Johnson Stock Poised for New Highs as Q2 Results Approach?

Johnson & Johnson Stock Up 0.3%

Johnson & Johnson stock opened at $257.82 on Tuesday. The company has a current ratio of 1.03, a quick ratio of 0.77 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.46. Johnson & Johnson has a 1-year low of $154.80 and a 1-year high of $269.43. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $237.62 and a 200 day simple moving average of $233.60. The company has a market cap of $620.64 billion, a P/E ratio of 29.81, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.51 and a beta of 0.24.

Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 14th. The company reported $2.70 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.68 by $0.02. Johnson & Johnson had a net margin of 21.83% and a return on equity of 32.60%. The firm had revenue of $24.06 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $23.60 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $2.77 EPS. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 9.9% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts anticipate that Johnson & Johnson will post 11.58 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

About Johnson & Johnson

Johnson & Johnson is a multinational healthcare company headquartered in New Brunswick, New Jersey, that develops, manufactures and markets a broad range of products across pharmaceuticals, medical devices and previously consumer health. Founded in 1886 by the Johnson family, the company has grown into a global healthcare organization with operations and sales in many countries around the world.

The company’s pharmaceuticals business, organized largely under its Janssen research and development organization, focuses on prescription medicines across therapeutic areas such as immunology, infectious disease, oncology and neuroscience.