Johnson & Johnson price target raised to $227 from $221 at BofA

BofA raised the firm’s price target on Johnson & Johnson to $227 from $221 and keeps a Neutral rating on the shares. The firm’s raised target reflects a higher blended P/E multiple, which assumes a higher MedTech multiple on higher organic growth and a higher Pharma multiple given a defensive premium. A Daubert ruling in the talc MDL case could be issued in the next one to two months, notes the analyst, who says that although the outcome of any legal case, including any potential settlement or injunction, is “inherently unpredictable,” the firm thinks talc risk should be manageable as even a mid-teens billion resolution cost is less than 3% of J&J’s market cap.