Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ) Stock Price Up 1.1% – Here’s What Happened

Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ)’s share price rose 1.1% on Wednesday . The company traded as high as $259.32 and last traded at $257.7750. Approximately 6,297,148 shares traded hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 25% from the average session volume of 8,394,058 shares. The stock had previously closed at $254.93.

Key Stories Impacting Johnson & Johnson

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

• Positive Sentiment: The FDA cleared J&J’s OTTAVA robotic-assisted surgery system, marking the company’s entry into surgical robotics. The approval gives J&J a potential long-term growth platform alongside its established medical-device and pharmaceutical businesses. Johnson & Johnson Gets FDA Nod for OTTAVA
• Positive Sentiment: Wells Fargo analysts reportedly expect J&J’s stock to rise, adding support to the recent bullish sentiment around the company. Johnson & Johnson Stock Price Expected to Rise
• Positive Sentiment: J&J was highlighted as a “Strong Buy” Dividend Aristocrat for dependable income. Its reputation for consistent dividends may attract investors seeking defensive, cash-generating companies while market valuations remain elevated. Three Strong Buy Dividend Aristocrat Stocks
• Neutral Sentiment: Jennifer Taubert will retire as executive vice president and worldwide chairman of Innovative Medicine after more than 21 years at J&J. Tom Cavanaugh is scheduled to succeed her in September. The transition follows significant growth in the pharmaceutical business but introduces a leadership change investors will monitor. Jennifer Taubert to Retire
• Positive Sentiment: An analyst described OTTAVA as a potential growth catalyst rather than a serious competitive threat to Intuitive Surgical, which supports the view that J&J’s robotics strategy can expand its addressable market. Analyst Reiterates Buy on Intuitive Surgical

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms recently issued reports on JNJ. Leerink Partners raised Johnson & Johnson from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $265.00 target price on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, May 13th. Weiss Ratings raised shares of Johnson & Johnson from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “buy (b)” rating in a report on Friday, July 24th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price target on Johnson & Johnson from $250.00 to $260.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 15th. Citigroup increased their price target on Johnson & Johnson from $285.00 to $298.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 8th. Finally, Scotiabank reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and set a $305.00 target price on shares of Johnson & Johnson in a research note on Thursday, July 16th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eighteen have issued a Buy rating and six have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $267.48.

Johnson & Johnson Price Performance

The stock has a market capitalization of $621.21 billion, a PE ratio of 29.87, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.41 and a beta of 0.24. The stock’s 50 day moving average is $246.74 and its two-hundred day moving average is $239.05. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.44, a quick ratio of 0.81 and a current ratio of 1.09.

Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 15th. The company reported $2.90 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.84 by $0.06. Johnson & Johnson had a return on equity of 32.42% and a net margin of 21.48%.The company had revenue of $25.31 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $25.06 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $2.77 EPS. Johnson & Johnson’s quarterly revenue was up 6.6% on a year-over-year basis. Johnson & Johnson has set its FY 2026 guidance at 11.600-11.750 EPS. On average, equities analysts anticipate that Johnson & Johnson will post 11.69 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Johnson & Johnson Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 8th. Investors of record on Tuesday, August 25th will be given a dividend of $1.34 per share. This represents a $5.36 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.1%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, August 25th. Johnson & Johnson’s payout ratio is presently 62.11%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Johnson & Johnson

In other Johnson & Johnson news, EVP Kathryn E. Wengel sold 10,000 shares of Johnson & Johnson stock in a transaction on Thursday, June 11th. The shares were 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 of the company’s stock, valued at $27,560,551.20. The trade was a 8.05% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Vanessa Broadhurst sold 23,054 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, July 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $251.27, for a total transaction of $5,792,778.58. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president owned 23,003 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $5,779,963.81. This trade represents a 50.06% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. 0.16% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Trading of Johnson & Johnson

Large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Brighton Jones LLC grew its holdings in shares of Johnson & Johnson by 13.9% in the fourth quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 51,876 shares of the company’s stock valued at $7,502,000 after purchasing an additional 6,332 shares during the period. United Bank raised its stake in Johnson & Johnson by 110.7% during the first quarter. United Bank now owns 9,279 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,539,000 after purchasing an additional 4,876 shares during the period. Sivia Capital Partners LLC boosted its holdings in Johnson & Johnson by 13.4% in the 2nd quarter. Sivia Capital Partners LLC now owns 5,863 shares of the company’s stock valued at $896,000 after purchasing an additional 692 shares during the last quarter. Wealth Group Ltd. grew its stake in shares of Johnson & Johnson by 12.8% in the 2nd quarter. Wealth Group Ltd. now owns 1,482 shares of the company’s stock valued at $226,000 after buying an additional 168 shares during the period. Finally, Schnieders Capital Management LLC. grew its stake in shares of Johnson & Johnson by 9.8% in the 2nd quarter. Schnieders Capital Management LLC. now owns 73,680 shares of the company’s stock valued at $11,255,000 after buying an additional 6,584 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 69.55% of the company’s stock.

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.