The sale of the cancer drug Darzalex helped Johnson & Johnson achieve better-than-expected results in the third quarter, while COVID-19 boosted vaccine sales and more customers reached for Tylenol.
The world’s largest health care products maker raised its profit forecast for 2021 after it said Tuesday that net income rose 3% to $ 3.67 billion in the quarter just ended.
Sales of the company’s single-shot COVID-19 vaccine began to surge in the quarter, nearly doubling its sales in the first half of 2021.
J&J also said sales of over-the-counter drugs, without a prescription, rose 18% globally as more customers bought Tylenol and Motrin, in part because they wanted relief from vaccine symptoms.
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Injections of COVID-19 vaccines, which have been widely used since the spring, can cause side effects such as arm pain or a passing fever.
J&J posted $ 502 million in sales for its COVID-19 vaccine in the third quarter after raising $ 264 million in the first half of 2021.
The New Brunswick, New Jersey company’s vaccine started slowly earlier this year. Its launch has been hampered by manufacturing complications and concerns about rare side effects, including a blood clot disorder.
However, corporate leaders expect sales to pick up and come in at around $ 2.5 billion for the year. The company has stated that it does not intend to benefit from the shots.
Last Friday, Food and Drug Administration advisors endorsed booster vaccine as it has with other shots from rivals Pfizer and Moderna. The FDA has yet to decide whether the additional shots will be approved. Then the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention will weigh who should get it.
Continue reading: I have a J&J vaccine. Should I get a booster shot as Delta Spreads?
Outside of vaccines, sales of Darzalex, J & J’s multiple myeloma treatment, rose 44% in the quarter to $ 1.58 billion. As a result, sales from the company’s largest division, pharmaceuticals, rose approximately 14% to nearly $ 13 billion.
J & J’s medical device revenue grew 8% to $ 6.64 billion, despite a surge in COVID-19 cases causing doctors and hospitals to postpone some non-emergency procedures like knee surgery during the quarter.
Overall, J & J’s adjusted earnings were $ 2.60 per share, while revenue grew nearly 11% to $ 23.34 billion.
According to FactSet, analysts expected average earnings of $ 2.35 per share on sales of $ 23.64 billion.
J&J now forecasts adjusted earnings of between $ 9.77 and $ 9.82 per share for 2021. The company also increased its operating revenue, excluding the impact of foreign exchange rates, to $ 92.8 billion to $ 93.3 billion.
Analysts forecast average earnings of $ 9.71 per share on sales of $ 94.36 billion.
J & J’s shares rose more than 2% in late morning trading to $ 164.25. The Dow Jones Industrial Average, which J&J is a part of, rose slightly.
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Reference: time.com
