Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ) Stock Price Down 1.6% – Should You Sell?

Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ) fell 1.6% on Tuesday. The stock traded as low as $265.59 and last traded at $267.6610. Approximately 5,573,050 shares traded hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 30% from the average session volume of 7,988,070 shares. The stock had previously closed at $271.95.

Key Johnson & Johnson News

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

• Positive Sentiment: Bank of America raised its JNJ price target to $278 from $263, citing stronger growth prospects and increasing its estimate for oral psoriasis drug Icotyde’s peak sales to $4.5 billion from $2.4 billion. Positive Tremfya and Carvykti data also support the company’s pipeline. Johnson & Johnson’s psoriasis drug Icotyde could hit $4.5B in peak sales, BofA says
• Positive Sentiment: Analysts remain broadly constructive ahead of JNJ’s October 13 third-quarter report, with expectations for approximately $25.31 billion in revenue and continued momentum from newer medicines. JPMorgan also reportedly expects the stock to rise. Johnson & Johnson Gears Up For Q3 Print
• Positive Sentiment: JNJ’s 64-year record of dividend increases and defensive healthcare business continue to appeal to income-oriented investors. Recent quarterly results also showed 6.6% year-over-year revenue growth and EPS above consensus.
• Neutral Sentiment: New survey research highlighting women’s limited awareness of menopause-related eye-health changes may support educational and commercial opportunities, but it is unlikely to materially affect near-term earnings. New Global Survey by Johnson & Johnson
• Negative Sentiment: After gaining roughly 43%–52% over the past year and approaching record levels, JNJ faces potential profit-taking and valuation concerns. Its reported P/E ratio near 30 leaves less room for disappointment.
• Negative Sentiment: Investors remain concerned about the STELARA patent cliff and biosimilar erosion, while analysts have warned that third-quarter earnings could miss expectations. These risks make upcoming results and management’s pipeline commentary important catalysts. Johnson & Johnson Q3 preview

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts have commented on JNJ shares. Freedom Capital upgraded Johnson & Johnson from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, July 16th. Citigroup boosted their price objective on Johnson & Johnson from $285.00 to $298.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 8th. HSBC raised their target price on Johnson & Johnson from $290.00 to $320.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, September 10th. Johnson Rice reissued a “buy” rating on shares of Johnson & Johnson in a report on Monday, August 3rd. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada raised their price objective on shares of Johnson & Johnson from $265.00 to $287.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday, July 13th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eighteen have assigned a Buy rating and six have assigned a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Johnson & Johnson presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $275.87.

Johnson & Johnson Stock Performance

The stock has a 50-day moving average of $266.53 and a 200 day moving average of $248.19. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.44, a quick ratio of 0.81 and a current ratio of 1.09. The firm has a market capitalization of $625.51 billion, a P/E ratio of 30.10, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.55 and a beta of 0.24.

Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, July 15th. The company reported $2.90 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.84 by $0.06. The company had revenue of $25.31 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $25.06 billion. Johnson & Johnson had a return on equity of 32.42% and a net margin of 21.48%.The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 6.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the company posted $2.77 earnings per share. Johnson & Johnson has set its FY 2026 guidance at 11.600-11.750 EPS. On average, research analysts anticipate that Johnson & Johnson will post 11.61 earnings per share for the current year.

Johnson & Johnson Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, September 8th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, August 25th were given a dividend of $1.34 per share. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, August 25th. This represents a $5.36 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.1%. Johnson & Johnson’s dividend payout ratio is presently 62.11%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Johnson & Johnson

In related news, EVP Jennifer L. Taubert sold 15,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $263.36, for a total value of $3,950,400.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president owned 194,451 shares in the company, valued at approximately $51,210,615.36. This represents a 7.16% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, EVP Elizabeth Forminard sold 15,918 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, August 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $257.00, for a total value of $4,090,926.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president owned 16,994 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,367,458. This trade represents a 48.37% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 87,569 shares of company stock valued at $23,064,544. 0.16% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Johnson & Johnson

Hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Auto Owners Insurance Co lifted its stake in Johnson & Johnson by 22,225.6% in the fourth quarter. Auto Owners Insurance Co now owns 69,419,308 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,436,633,000 after buying an additional 69,108,368 shares in the last quarter. Capital World Investors acquired a new stake in shares of Johnson & Johnson during the fourth quarter worth $2,005,942,000. Jupiter Topco LLC bought a new stake in Johnson & Johnson in the 2nd quarter valued at $1,967,399,000. Diamant Asset Management Inc. boosted its stake in Johnson & Johnson by 24,436.5% in the 1st quarter. Diamant Asset Management Inc. now owns 4,473,008 shares of the company’s stock worth $109,338,000 after purchasing an additional 4,454,778 shares during the period. Finally, Capital International Investors raised its stake in shares of Johnson & Johnson by 93.3% in the 4th quarter. Capital International Investors now owns 7,471,031 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,546,130,000 after purchasing an additional 3,605,981 shares during the period. 69.55% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Johnson & Johnson

Johnson & Johnson (NYSE: JNJ) is a global healthcare company that develops, manufactures and markets products through two primary business segments: Innovative Medicine and MedTech. Its operations serve patients, healthcare professionals and consumers in markets around the world.

The Innovative Medicine segment focuses on prescription medicines in areas including immunology, oncology, neuroscience, cardiovascular and metabolic disease, infectious diseases, and pulmonary hypertension.