Johnson & Johnson
If you want a more conventional healthcare stock play, you can’t get more mainstream than megacap Johnson & Johnson (JNJ).
Johnson & Johnson is an old favorite among defensive dividend stocks. It’s a healthcare play — but also a consumer-staples play, thanks to popular brands including Band-Aid, Tylenol and Splenda.
The healthcare angle makes the stock, JNJ, pretty recession-proof, since medical expenses don’t go away even in tough times, and the company’s consumer-brand power gives it stability for the long run.
Many investors have been overlooking Johnson & Johnson after the company struggled from 2010 to 2012 amid quality-control issues and big product recalls. However, since CEO Alex Gorxy took over two years ago, the company has been marching steadily higher. The stock is up almost 60% since Gorsky took over vs. 35% or so for the S&P 500. That includes an impressive gain of 9% this year despite a pretty flat market.
And, long term, J&J has a total return of about 140% including dividends over the past 10 years, thanks to distributions that have increased 145% from 28.5 cents per share each quarter in 2004 to 70 cents today.
