Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ) Cut to “Hold” at Erste Group Bank

Erste Group Bank lowered shares of Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ) from a buy rating to a hold rating in a research report sent to investors on Wednesday morning, MarketBeat reports.

A number of other brokerages have also recently commented on JNJ. Guggenheim restated a “buy” rating and set a $287.00 target price on shares of Johnson & Johnson in a report on Wednesday, October 7th. Freedom Capital upgraded shares of Johnson & Johnson from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, July 16th. Johnson Rice reiterated a “buy” rating on shares of Johnson & Johnson in a research note on Monday, August 3rd. Wall Street Zen cut shares of Johnson & Johnson from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Saturday, August 1st. Finally, Argus set a $300.00 price objective on shares of Johnson & Johnson in a research note on Wednesday, July 29th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seventeen have assigned a Buy rating and eight have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $275.92.

Johnson & Johnson Trading Down 1.3%

JNJ opened at $264.13 on Wednesday. The stock has a market cap of $635.85 billion, a PE ratio of 40.02, a PEG ratio of 2.65 and a beta of 0.21. The company has a quick ratio of 0.81, a current ratio of 1.02 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.44. The business has a 50 day moving average of $265.64 and a 200-day moving average of $250.21. Johnson & Johnson has a 52 week low of $184.66 and a 52 week high of $281.07.

Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, October 13th. The company reported $2.59 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.53 by $0.06. The company had revenue of $25.40 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $25.38 billion. Johnson & Johnson had a return on equity of 31.64% and a net margin of 16.20%. The firm’s revenue was up 5.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $2.80 earnings per share. Johnson & Johnson has set its FY 2026 guidance at 11.050-11.150 EPS. Equities research analysts predict that Johnson & Johnson will post 11.12 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Johnson & Johnson Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 8th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, November 24th will be paid a dividend of $1.34 per share. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, November 24th. This represents a $5.36 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.0%. Johnson & Johnson’s payout ratio is presently 81.21%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Johnson & Johnson

In other news, EVP Timothy Schmid sold 33,597 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, September 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $274.74, for a total value of $9,230,439.78. Following the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 25,447 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $6,991,308.78. This represents a 56.90% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, EVP Jennifer L. Taubert sold 15,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, August 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $263.36, for a total value of $3,950,400.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president owned 194,451 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $51,210,615.36. The trade was a 7.16% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 64,515 shares of company stock worth $17,271,766. 0.16% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Johnson & Johnson

A number of hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Trueblood Wealth Management LLC grew its position in Johnson & Johnson by 1.3% during the 3rd quarter. Trueblood Wealth Management LLC now owns 8,204 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,172,000 after purchasing an additional 107 shares during the last quarter. Valley National Advisers Inc. raised its holdings in Johnson & Johnson by 11.3% in the third quarter. Valley National Advisers Inc. now owns 4,410 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,168,000 after buying an additional 448 shares during the last quarter. Yardley Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in Johnson & Johnson in the third quarter worth about $236,000. Bernardo Wealth Planning LLC lifted its stake in shares of Johnson & Johnson by 105.8% in the third quarter. Bernardo Wealth Planning LLC now owns 14,516 shares of the company’s stock worth $3,843,000 after buying an additional 7,464 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Signaturefd LLC lifted its stake in shares of Johnson & Johnson by 6.8% in the third quarter. Signaturefd LLC now owns 77,490 shares of the company’s stock worth $20,515,000 after buying an additional 4,917 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 69.55% of the company’s stock.

Trending Headlines about Johnson & Johnson

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

• Positive Sentiment: The United Kingdom approved J&J’s oral psoriasis treatment, expanding the company’s commercial opportunity in a major market and strengthening its immunology pipeline. UK approves J&J’s oral psoriasis pill
• Positive Sentiment: J&J reported first real-world data for its VARIPULSE Pro platform and 12-month outcomes for the OMNYPULSE platform in atrial-fibrillation treatment. The results could support adoption of its MedTech portfolio and help offset weakness in other device businesses. J&J reports VARIPULSE Pro and OMNYPULSE data
• Positive Sentiment: J&J has benefited from investor rotation into defensive healthcare and consumer-staples companies amid broader large-cap weakness, reinforcing demand for its relatively stable earnings and dividend profile. Defensive stocks attract buyers
• Neutral Sentiment: J&J’s implied fair value was raised from $270.59 to $279.41 per share, but analyst views remain divided. Supporters cite earnings resilience and the drug pipeline, while others point to valuation, MedTech execution risk and possible dilution from recent deals. J&J fair value adjustment
• Negative Sentiment: A proposed combination involving J&J’s orthopedics business and Smith & Nephew reportedly collapsed over a leadership dispute. The development removes potential strategic benefits and may raise questions about execution, although Smith & Nephew declined to comment. Orthopedics merger reportedly collapsed
• Negative Sentiment: J&J reclaimed its 50-day moving average, but falling earnings estimates, a premium valuation and weakness in MedTech are limiting the bullish technical signal. Erste Group also downgraded the shares to “Hold,” adding to near-term investor caution. J&J stock outlook and valuation concerns

About Johnson & Johnson

Johnson & Johnson (NYSE: JNJ) is a global healthcare company headquartered in New Brunswick, New Jersey. Founded in 1886, the company develops and markets products and services for patients, healthcare professionals and institutions worldwide.

Johnson & Johnson operates through two principal segments: Innovative Medicine and MedTech. Innovative Medicine focuses on pharmaceuticals for areas such as immunology, oncology, neuroscience, infectious diseases and cardiovascular conditions.