How to buy Johnson & Johnson (JNJ) shares in the UK

Learn how to easily invest in Johnson & Johnson shares.

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Johnson & Johnson
NYSE: JNJ - USD
DRUG MANUFACTURERS-GENERAL
$172.20
+$0.02 (+0.01%)
Fact checked

Johnson & Johnson (JNJ) is a leading drug manufacturers-general business based in the US. It opened the day at $172.54 after a previous close of $172.18. During the day the price has varied from a low of $171.84 to a high of $172.98. The latest price was $172.2 (25 minute delay). Johnson & Johnson is listed on the NYSE and employs 136,000 staff. All prices are listed in US Dollars.

How to buy shares in Johnson & Johnson

  1. Choose a platform. If you're a beginner, our share-dealing table below can help you choose.
  2. Open your account. You'll need your ID, bank details and national insurance number.
  3. Confirm your payment details. You'll need to fund your account with a bank transfer, debit card or credit card.
  4. Search the platform for stock code: JNJ in this case.
  5. Research Johnson & Johnson shares. The platform should provide the latest information available.
  6. Buy your Johnson & Johnson shares. It's that simple.
The whole process can take as little as 15 minutes.

What's in this guide?

  1. Can I buy shares in Johnson & Johnson?
  2. Has coronavirus impacted Johnson & Johnson shares?
  3. Johnson & Johnson shares summary
  4. Compare share dealing platforms
  5. Is Johnson & Johnson stock a buy or sell?
  6. Performance over time
  7. Can I short Johnson & Johnson shares?
  8. Is Johnson & Johnson suitable for ethical investing?
  9. Are Johnson & Johnson shares over-valued?
  10. Financials
  11. How volatile are Johnson & Johnson shares?
  12. Does Johnson & Johnson pay a dividend?
  13. Have Johnson & Johnson shares ever split?
  14. Other common questions

How has coronavirus impacted Johnson & Johnson's share price?

Since the stock market crash that started in February 2020, Johnson & Johnson's share price has had significant positive movement.

Its last market close was $165.97, which is 9.66% up on its pre-crash value of $149.93 and 52.04% up on the lowest point reached during the March 2020 crash when the shares fell as low as $109.16.

If you had bought $1,000 worth of Johnson & Johnson shares at the start of February 2020, those shares would have been worth $740.19 at the bottom of the March crash, and if you held on to them, then as of the last market close they'd be worth $1,105.36.

Johnson & Johnson share price (NYSE:JNJ)

Use our graph to track the performance of JNJ stocks over time.

Johnson & Johnson shares at a glance

Information last updated 2021-07-30.
Open$172.54
High$172.98
Low$171.84
Close$172.2
Previous close$172.18
Change$0.02
Change %0.0116%
Volume5,346,742
Information last updated 2021-07-29.
52-week range$131.0873 - $173.38
50-day moving average$167.1334
200-day moving average$164.6765
Wall St. target price$187.39
PE ratio25.8839
Dividend yield$4.09 (2.38%)
Earnings per share (TTM)$6.652
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Fees for buying 5x Johnson & Johnson shares with popular platforms

Both exchange rates and share prices fluctuate in real time, so the costs presented here should be considered as a guide only. They do not incorporate stamp duty. Always refer to the platform itself for availability and pricing – which may differ from our information.

Platform Platform fee Min. initial deposit Trading fee estimate
eToro Free Stocks logo £0 $200 £3.10
£622.33 total
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Freetrade logo £0 No minimum £2.79
£622.02 total
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Degiro Share Dealing logo £0 £0.01 £1.06
£620.29 total
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Stake logo £0 £50 £3.11
£622.34 total
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Hargreaves Lansdown Fund and Share Account logo £0 £1 £18.16
£637.39 total
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interactive investor Trading Account logo £9.99 per month No minimum £17.29
£636.52 total
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Fineco logo £0 No minimum £6.19
£625.42 total
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Halifax Share Dealing Account logo £36 per year £20 £17.25
£636.49 total
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Full comparison of share dealing platforms

All investing should be regarded as longer term. The value of your investments can go up and down, and you may get back less than you invest. Past performance is no guarantee of future results. If you’re not sure which investments are right for you, please seek out a financial adviser. Capital at risk.

Is it a good time to buy Johnson & Johnson stock?

The technical analysis gauge below displays real-time ratings for the timeframes you select. This is not a recommendation, however. It represents a technical analysis based on the most popular technical indicators: Moving Averages, Oscillators and Pivots. Finder might not concur and takes no responsibility.

Johnson & Johnson price performance over time

Historical closes compared with the last close of $172.2

1 month (2021-07-01) 3.76%
3 months (2021-04-30) 5.82%

Is Johnson & Johnson under- or over-valued?

Valuing a stock is incredibly difficult, and any metric has to be viewed as part of a bigger picture of overall performance. However, analysts commonly use some key metrics to help gauge value.

P/E ratio

Johnson & Johnson's current share price divided by its per-share earnings (EPS) over a 12-month period gives a "trailing price/earnings ratio" of roughly 26x. In other words, Johnson & Johnson shares trade at around 26x recent earnings.

That's relatively low compared to, say, the trailing 12-month P/E ratio for the NASDAQ 100 at the end of 2019 (27.29). The low P/E ratio could mean that investors are pessimistic about the outlook for the shares or simply that they're under-valued.

However, Johnson & Johnson's P/E ratio is best considered in relation to those of others within the drug manufacturers-general industry or those of similar companies.

PEG ratio

Johnson & Johnson's "price/earnings-to-growth ratio" can be calculated by dividing its P/E ratio by its growth – to give 1.8994. A PEG ratio over 1 can be interpreted as meaning shares are overvalued at the current rate of growth, or may anticipate an acceleration in growth.

The PEG ratio provides a broader view than just the P/E ratio, as it gives more insight into Johnson & Johnson's future profitability. By accounting for growth, it could also help you if you're comparing the share prices of multiple high-growth companies.

However, it's sensible to consider Johnson & Johnson's PEG ratio in relation to those of similar companies.

EBITDA

Johnson & Johnson's EBITDA (earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortisation) is a whopping $30.6 billion (£22 billion).

The EBITDA is a measure of a Johnson & Johnson's overall financial performance and is widely used to measure a its profitability.

To put that into context you can compare it against similar companies.

Financials

Revenue TTM $89.2 billion
Operating margin TTM 25.81%
Gross profit TTM $54.3 billion
Return on assets TTM 7.98%
Return on equity TTM -9999999%
Profit margin 19.92%
Book value $25.006
Market capitalisation $453.4 billion

TTM: trailing 12 months

How to short and sell Johnson & Johnson shares

  1. Create a CFD or spread betting account.
  2. Search for the stock code. E.g. "JNJ.US"
  3. Choose your position size.
  4. Select "sell" rather than "buy".
  5. Confirm your position and keep tabs on it. You may wish to set limits on your position.

There are currently 15.8 million Johnson & Johnson shares held short by investors – that's known as the "short interest". This figure is 4% up from 15.2 million last month.

There are a few different ways that this level of interest in shorting Johnson & Johnson shares can be evaluated.

Short interest ratio (SIR)

Johnson & Johnson's "short interest ratio" (SIR) is the quantity of Johnson & Johnson shares currently shorted divided by the average quantity of Johnson & Johnson shares traded daily (recently around 6.5 million). Johnson & Johnson's SIR currently stands at 2.41. In other words for every 100,000 Johnson & Johnson shares traded daily on the market, roughly 2410 shares are currently held short.

To gain some more context, you can compare Johnson & Johnson's short interest ratio against those of similar companies.

However Johnson & Johnson's short interest can also be evaluated against the total number of Johnson & Johnson shares, or, against the total number of tradable Johnson & Johnson shares (the shares that aren't held by "insiders" or major long-term shareholders – also known as the "float"). In this case Johnson & Johnson's short interest could be expressed as 0.01% of the outstanding shares (for every 100,000 Johnson & Johnson shares in existence, roughly 10 shares are currently held short) or 0.006% of the tradable shares (for every 100,000 tradable Johnson & Johnson shares, roughly 6 shares are currently held short).

Such a low SIR usually points to an optimistic outlook for the share price, with fewer people currently willing to bet against Johnson & Johnson.

Find out more about how you can short Johnson & Johnson stock.

Environmental, social and governance track record

Environmental, social and governance (known as ESG) criteria are a set of three factors used to measure the sustainability and social impact of companies like Johnson & Johnson.

Total ESG risk score

Johnson & Johnson's total ESG risk: 35.8

Socially conscious investors use ESG scores to screen how an investment aligns with their worldview, and Johnson & Johnson's overall score of 35.8 (as at 12/31/2018) is pretty weak – landing it in it in the 72nd percentile of companies rated in the same sector.

ESG scores are increasingly used to estimate the level of risk a company like Johnson & Johnson is exposed to within the areas of "environmental" (carbon footprint, resource use etc.), "social" (health and safety, human rights etc.), and "governance" (anti-corruption, tax transparency etc.).

To gain some more context, you can compare Johnson & Johnson's total ESG risk score against those of similar companies.

Environmental score

Johnson & Johnson's environmental score: 3.79/100

Johnson & Johnson's environmental score of 3.79 puts it squarely in the 7th percentile of companies rated in the same sector. This could suggest that Johnson & Johnson is a leader in its sector terms of its environmental impact, and exposed to a lower level of risk.

Social score

Johnson & Johnson's social score: 25.14/100

Johnson & Johnson's social score of 25.14 puts it squarely in the 7th percentile of companies rated in the same sector. This could suggest that Johnson & Johnson is a leader in its sector when it comes to taking good care of its workforce and the communities it impacts.

Governance score

Johnson & Johnson's governance score: 14.87/100

Johnson & Johnson's governance score puts it squarely in the 7th percentile of companies rated in the same sector. That could suggest that Johnson & Johnson is a leader in its sector when it comes to responsible management and strategy, and exposed to a lower level of risk.

Controversy score

Johnson & Johnson's controversy score: 4/5

ESG scores also evaluate any incidences of controversy that a company has been involved in. A high-profile company, Johnson & Johnson scored a 4 out of 5 for controversy – the second-lowest score possible, reflecting that Johnson & Johnson has a damaged public profile.

Wondering how that compares? Below are the controversy scores of similar companies.

Environmental, social, and governance (ESG) summary

Johnson & Johnson was last rated for ESG on: 2019-01-01.

Total ESG score 35.8
Total ESG percentile 72.38
Environmental score 3.79
Environmental score percentile 7
Social score 25.14
Social score percentile 7
Governance score 14.87
Governance score percentile 7
Level of controversy 4

Johnson & Johnson share dividends

2.4%

Dividend yield: 2.38% of stock value

2.5%

Forward annual dividend yield: 2.46% of stock value

38.3%

Dividend payout ratio: 38.33% of net profits

Johnson & Johnson has recently paid out dividends equivalent to 2.38% of its share value annually.

Johnson & Johnson has paid out, on average, around 38.33% of recent net profits as dividends. That has enabled analysts to estimate a "forward annual dividend yield" of 2.46% of the current stock value. This means that over a year, based on recent payouts (which are sadly no guarantee of future payouts), shareholders could enjoy a 2.46% return on their shares, in the form of dividend payments. In Johnson & Johnson's case, that would currently equate to about $4.09 per share.

While Johnson & Johnson's payout ratio might seem fairly standard, it's worth remembering that it may be investing much of the rest of its net profits in future growth.

Johnson & Johnson's most recent dividend payout was on 6 September 2021. The latest dividend was paid out to all shareholders who bought their shares by 22 August 2021 (the "ex-dividend date").

Johnson & Johnson's dividend yield is perhaps best considered in relation to those of similar companies.

Have Johnson & Johnson's shares ever split?

Johnson & Johnson's shares were split on a 2:1 basis on 12 June 2001. So if you had owned 1 share the day before before the split, the next day you'd have owned 2 shares. This wouldn't directly have changed the overall worth of your Johnson & Johnson shares – just the quantity. However, indirectly, the new 50% lower share price could have impacted the market appetite for Johnson & Johnson shares which in turn could have impacted Johnson & Johnson's share price.

Share price volatility

Over the last 12 months, Johnson & Johnson's shares have ranged in value from as little as $131.0873 up to $173.38. A popular way to gauge a stock's volatility is its "beta".

JNJ.US volatility(beta: 0.71)Avg. volatility(beta: 1.00)LowHigh

Beta is a measure of a share's volatility in relation to the market. The market (NYSE average) beta is 1, while Johnson & Johnson's is 0.7111. This would suggest that Johnson & Johnson's shares are less volatile than average (for this exchange).

To put Johnson & Johnson's beta into context you can compare it against those of similar companies.

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Johnson & Johnson in the news

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