Nicholas Hoffman & Company LLC. Sells 2,208 Shares of Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ)

Nicholas Hoffman & Company LLC. decreased its position in shares of Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ) by 6.2% during the first quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The institutional investor owned 33,675 shares of the company’s stock after selling 2,208 shares during the period. Johnson & Johnson comprises 0.3% of Nicholas Hoffman & Company LLC.’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 28th largest position. Nicholas Hoffman & Company LLC.’s holdings in Johnson & Johnson were worth $5,327,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Strategic Financial Concepts LLC raised its position in Johnson & Johnson by 113.3% in the 1st quarter. Strategic Financial Concepts LLC now owns 3,368 shares of the company’s stock worth $533,000 after buying an additional 1,789 shares during the last quarter. Confluence Wealth Services Inc. grew its stake in shares of Johnson & Johnson by 20.7% in the first quarter. Confluence Wealth Services Inc. now owns 36,576 shares of the company’s stock worth $5,786,000 after acquiring an additional 6,268 shares during the period. Byrne Asset Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of Johnson & Johnson by 1.2% during the first quarter. Byrne Asset Management LLC now owns 19,382 shares of the company’s stock valued at $3,066,000 after purchasing an additional 227 shares during the last quarter. American Financial Advisors LLC lifted its position in Johnson & Johnson by 11.9% during the first quarter. American Financial Advisors LLC now owns 3,314 shares of the company’s stock valued at $524,000 after purchasing an additional 353 shares during the period. Finally, Intrinsic Value Partners LLC bought a new stake in Johnson & Johnson in the 1st quarter worth approximately $201,000. Institutional investors own 69.55% of the company’s stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, major shareholder & Johnson Johnson sold 3,725 shares of Johnson & Johnson stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $25.81, for a total transaction of $96,142.25. Following the sale, the insider now owns 4,099,575 shares in the company, valued at $105,810,030.75. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this link. In other Johnson & Johnson news, major shareholder & Johnson Johnson sold 3,725 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $25.81, for a total transaction of $96,142.25. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 4,099,575 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $105,810,030.75. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, EVP Jennifer L. Taubert sold 59,397 shares of Johnson & Johnson stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $156.27, for a total value of $9,281,969.19. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 141,416 shares in the company, valued at $22,099,078.32. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.16% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms have recently weighed in on JNJ. Morgan Stanley lowered their price target on Johnson & Johnson from $168.00 to $167.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, April 17th. Royal Bank of Canada dropped their target price on Johnson & Johnson from $181.00 to $175.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, April 17th. Bank of America reduced their price target on shares of Johnson & Johnson from $180.00 to $170.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, April 17th. Cantor Fitzgerald reissued an “overweight” rating and issued a $215.00 price objective on shares of Johnson & Johnson in a report on Monday, April 15th. Finally, StockNews.com raised shares of Johnson & Johnson from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 6th. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, six have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $175.86.

Johnson & Johnson Price Performance

Shares of JNJ traded down $2.21 during mid-day trading on Tuesday, reaching $144.61. The stock had a trading volume of 8,814,891 shares, compared to its average volume of 7,383,957. The firm has a market cap of $348.48 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 9.02, a PEG ratio of 2.41 and a beta of 0.53. Johnson & Johnson has a 12 month low of $143.13 and a 12 month high of $175.97. The business has a fifty day moving average of $154.80 and a 200 day moving average of $155.14. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.38, a quick ratio of 0.91 and a current ratio of 1.16.

Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, April 16th. The company reported $2.71 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.64 by $0.07. Johnson & Johnson had a net margin of 45.26% and a return on equity of 36.43%. The company had revenue of $21.38 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $21.39 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $2.68 EPS. Johnson & Johnson’s quarterly revenue was up 2.3% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities analysts predict that Johnson & Johnson will post 10.65 EPS for the current year.

Johnson & Johnson Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, June 4th. Investors of record on Tuesday, May 21st will be issued a $1.24 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, May 20th. This is a boost from Johnson & Johnson’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.19. This represents a $4.96 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.43%. Johnson & Johnson’s payout ratio is currently 29.68%.

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.