Johnson & Johnson’s coronavirus disease (COVID-19) vaccines will be seen at Northwell Health’s South Shore University Hospital in Bay Shore, New York on March 3, 2021.
Shannon Stapleton | Reuters
Johnson & Johnson on Tuesday reported $ 100 million in first-quarter sales of its Covid-19 vaccine, which is on hold in the US while federal health officials investigate a rare blood clotting problem.
When it released its first quarter financial results, the company also reported earnings and sales that exceeded Wall Street’s expectations.
According to Refinitiv’s average estimates, J&J has fared compared to Wall Street expectations as follows:
- Adjusted earnings per share: $ 2.59 per share versus $ 2.34 expected.
- Revenue: $ 22.32 billion versus $ 21.98 billion expected.
The New Jersey-based company’s share price fell slightly in premarket trading after the report.
J & J’s pharmaceuticals business, which developed the single-shot vaccine Covid, had sales of $ 12.19 billion, up 9.6% year over year. Results were driven by sales of the company’s multiple myeloma drugs Darzalex and Stelara, a treatment for Crohn’s disease.
The company’s consumer unit, which makes products like Neutrogena Face Wash and Listerine, had sales of $ 3.5 billion, down 2.3% year over year. J&J executives told investors the decline was due to an “unfavorable comparison” with the previous year when people were stocking over-the-counter products due to the virus.
The medical device unit grossed $ 6.57 billion, up 7.9% as the pandemic recovery improves. The unit was badly hit last year when the pandemic forced hospitals to postpone elective surgeries and Americans stayed at home.
J & J’s chief financial officer Joseph Wolk told CNBC Tuesday that the three businesses are “healthier” than they were last year when they entered the pandemic.
The company increased its profit and sales forecast for the year. J&J now expects full year earnings of $ 9.42 to $ 9.57 per share, compared to its previous guidance of $ 9.40 to $ 9.60 per share. Revenue is expected to range between $ 90.6 billion and $ 91.6 billion, compared to its previous forecast of $ 90.5 billion to $ 91.7 billion.
J & J’s Covid vaccine was suspended in the US after six women developed a rare but potentially life-threatening bleeding disorder. One woman died and another was in critical condition.
The six women developed a condition known as cerebral sinus thrombosis within about two weeks of receiving the shot, US health officials said. CVST is a rare form of stroke that occurs when a blood clot forms in the venous sinuses of the brain. It can eventually leak blood into the brain tissue and cause bleeding.
The Chief Medical Officer of the White House, Dr. Anthony Fauci said last week the hiatus would give US health officials the time they need to thoroughly investigate the cases and “find some common ground among the women involved”.
Vamil Divan, an analyst at Mizuho Securities, said in a notice to investors Tuesday that he expects security concerns about the J&J shot to fuel further demand for Pfizer’s mRNA-based vaccine.
During an earnings meeting with investors, J&J executives said the company was working to “restore confidence in the vaccine” after reports of rare blood clots shocked some patients.
“We hope by making people aware of it [of the risk,] Not only do we use clear diagnostic and therapeutic guidelines to restore confidence in our vaccine, ”said Dr. Paul Stoffels, Scientific Director of J & J.
Wolk told CNBC that the company is working with US regulators to ensure they have all the information they need to make a decision about using the J&J vaccine. He expects the US to make a decision by the end of this week. A key body of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention is due to meet on Friday to make a recommendation on the vaccine.
“We remain very confident and hope the benefit-risk profile will work,” he told CNBC’s Squawk Box, adding that the company continues to expect 100 million doses to be released in the first half of this year will, if the US investigation is conducted on the clot cases, “go well.”
