Johnson & Johnson Q4 Profit Down 26%, But Adj. EPS Tops Estimates

(RTTNews) - Healthcare company Johnson & Johnson (JNJ) on Tuesday reported that profit for fourth quarter declined 25.9 percent from last year, reflecting a sales decline and higher provisions for income taxes.

Adjusted earnings per share topped analysts' expectations, while quarterly revenues missed it by a whisker. The company also initiated operational earnings forecast for the full-year 2023, above estimates.

For the fourth quarter, net earnings declined about 25 percent to $3.52 billion or $1.33 per share from $4.74 billion or $1.77 per share in the prior-year quarter.

Excluding items, adjusted net earnings for the quarter were $6.22 billion or $2.35 per share, compared to $5.68 billion or $2.13 per share in the year-ago quarter.

On average, 14 analysts polled by Thomson Reuters expected the company to report earnings of $2.23 per share for the quarter. Analysts' estimates typically exclude special items.

Sales for the quarter decreased 4.4 percent to $23.71 billion from $24.80 billion in the same quarter last year, primarily hurt by unfavorable foreign exchange and reduced COVID-19 vaccine sales. Analysts expected revenues of $23.94 billion for the quarter.

Operational sales, excluding COVID-19 Vaccine, grew 4.6 percent. Operational sales edged up 0.9 percent and adjusted operational sales edged up 0.8 percent.

Region-wise, US sales grew 2.9 percent to $12.52 billion, while international sales declined 11.5 percent to $11.19 billion from last year.

Consumer Health worldwide sales edged up 1 percent to $3.77 billion, while pharmaceutical worldwide sales declined 7.4 percent to $13.16 billion and medical devices worldwide sales decreased 1.2 percent to $6.78 billion from last year. Looking ahead to fiscal 2023, the company now projects adjusted earnings in a range of $10.45 to $10.65 per share and adjusted operational earnings in a range of $10.40 to $10.60 per share.

Additionally, the company now projects reported sales and operational sales between $96.9 billion and $97.9 billion, with adjusted operational sales growth of 3.5 to 4.5 percent. The Street is looking for earnings of $10.33 per share on a revenue growth of 2.9 percent to $97.84 billion for the year.

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