Johnson & Johnson raises 2026 outlook after US$25.4B quarterly sales

A higher full-year profit forecast accompanied US$25.4 billion in quarterly sales as Johnson & Johnson NYSEJNJ reported third-quarter results on Tuesday. The company increased its adjusted earnings midpoint by US$0.06 to US$11.10 a share for 2026.

The Oct. 13 revised sales range is US$101.0 billion to US$101.4 billion. Adjusted diluted earnings guidance is now US$11.05 to US$11.15 a share, with further modelling assumptions due at Tuesday's earnings call.

Johnson & Johnson is a large U.S. healthcare group selling prescription medicines and medical technology worldwide. Shares closed at US$263.73 in New York on Oct. 12, before the announcement, according to Google Finance's NYSEJNJ quote as of 4:00 p.m. EDT.

For the third quarter of 2026, revenue increased 5.9 per cent from US$23.993 billion a year earlier. Net earnings fell to US$210 million from US$5.152 billion a year earlier. Adjusted diluted earnings declined to US$2.59 a share from US$2.80, including the impact of acquisition and collaboration costs.

The July 29 sales forecast had been US$100.8 billion to US$101.4 billion, so October's update raises the lower bound while retaining the ceiling. July's adjusted earnings range was US$10.96 to US$11.11 a share. The adjusted earnings floor rises US$0.09 a share, while the ceiling rises US$0.04.

The Oct. 13 revision lifts the sales midpoint by US$100 million. Expected reported sales growth is now 7.4 per cent at the midpoint, while adjusted earnings growth is projected at 2.9 per cent.

Quarterly sales were close to the US$25.37 billion forecast in IG's Oct. 7 earnings preview. That revenue expectation came from an earnings-calendar snapshot dated Oct. 6. The reported total was about US$29 million above that forecast.

Johnson & Johnson said its third-quarter reported earnings included a one-time special charge for the proposed talc litigation resolution, alongside acquisition and collaboration costs. Its adjusted measure excludes intangible amortization and special items, but still reflects those transaction costs.

The Oct. 13 release estimated year-to-date free cash flow at approximately US$15.1 billion. That non-GAAP measure deducts capital spending from operating cash flow; the company said operating cash flow would appear in subsequent SEC filings.

Drug Sales Outpace Device Growth

For the third quarter of 2026, Innovative Medicine sales rose 7.7 per cent to US$16.757 billion. MedTech revenue increased 2.5 per cent to US$8.642 billion, with growth driven by electrophysiology, Shockwave, contact lenses and trauma products.

The supplementary schedules put third-quarter Tremfya sales at US$2.396 billion, up 68.3 per cent. Stelara sales fell 54.4 per cent to US$716 million, leaving overall immunology growth at 1.3 per cent.

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"This progress, together with strategic investments in high-growth areas, gives us clearer line of sight to double-digit growth by the end of the decade," Johnson & Johnson chairman and chief executive Joaquin Duato said in the release.

The immunology comparison extends to AbbVie Inc. NYSEABBV, which reported US$8.786 billion in second-quarter immunology revenues on July 31. That represented growth of 15.1 per cent, while Humira sales fell 35.9 per cent in that quarter.

Bristol-Myers Squibb Company NYSEBMY will report third-quarter earnings on Oct. 29. Its report will add another financial comparison as Johnson & Johnson's oncology portfolio contributes to drug sales growth.

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The next scheduled step is Johnson & Johnson's Oct. 13 earnings call. Management is due to provide further modelling assumptions behind the revised annual outlook, including how operating performance and transaction costs feed into its earnings forecast.