10 Best Dividend Kings Stocks to Invest in Now

3. Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ)

Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 81

Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ) is a New Jersey-based pharmaceutical company that specializes in a wide range of biotech and medical products and offers related services to consumers. The company is gaining attention for its ongoing innovation and recent acquisitions. It recently announced plans to invest over $14 billion to expand its focus on treating central nervous system disorders through the acquisition of Intra-Cellular Therapies. The deal will be financed with a mix of cash reserves and debt, according to J&J, and is expected to be finalized later this year. This transaction marks the largest biotech deal in over a year, highlighting a resurgence in healthcare mergers and acquisitions following a slowdown in 2024 when major pharmaceutical companies paused to integrate previous post-pandemic acquisitions.

Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ) posted strong third-quarter 2024 earnings, reporting $22.4 billion in revenue, a 5.25% increase compared to the same period last year. The company generated $14 billion in free cash flow during the first nine months of the year, up from $11.9 billion in the previous year. It has revised its 2024 outlook, including adjusted operational earnings per share (EPS), to account for its improved performance and the recent acquisition of V-Wave. The company now anticipates adjusted operational sales growth of 5.7% to 6.2%, with a midpoint target of 6.0%.

Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ) is one of the best dividend kings on our list as the company has been rewarding shareholders with growing dividends for the past 62 years. It offers a quarterly dividend of $1.24 per share and has a dividend yield of 3.43%, as of January 13.

Of the 900 hedge funds tracked by Insider Monkey at the end of Q3 2024, 81 funds held stakes in Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ), up from 80 in the previous quarter. The total value of these stakes is over $5.4 billion. With over 5.2 million shares, Marshall Wace LLP was one of the company’s leading stakeholders in Q3.