Dividend Aristocrats Ranked: Top 5 According To Hedge Funds

2. Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ)

Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 85

Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ) is one of the leading Big Pharma companies, based in New Jersey, US. The company has been raising its dividends consistently for the past 60 years, which places it as one of the best dividend stocks according to hedge funds. The company offers a quarterly dividend of $1.13 per share and has a dividend yield of 2.62%, as of January 18.

Citigroup raised its price target on Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ) to $205 with a Buy rating on the shares, appreciating the company’s performance last year.

At the end of Q3 2022, 85 hedge funds in Insider Monkey’s database owned stakes in Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ), up from 83 in the previous quarter. The collective value of these stakes is over $5.4 billion. Among these hedge funds, Fisher Asset Management was the company’s leading stakeholder in Q3.

Here’s what Distillate Capital Partners LLC said about Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ) in its Q2 2022 investor letter:

“Johnson & Johnson was among the 2 largest trims at around 1% each. Each stock was up 1% in the quarter compared to the 16% price decline for the S&P 500 and the positions were reduced as the valuations became somewhat less appealing, though still attractive enough to warrant inclusion.”