Johnson & Johnson share price down, sales slide on stronger dollar

Johnson & Johnson stated a 0.6% decline in sales during the fourth quarter as a stronger US dollar dented profits from the companys international division.

The worlds largest maker of health-care products projected its 2015 adjusted earnings per share to range between $6.12 and $6.27. The estimate, however, does not include the impact of intangible amortization costs.

Considering the expense, which hasnt been included in the companys estimates for the first time, earnings per share stand at $5.80 to $5.95, worse compared to adjusted profit of $5.97 a share in 2014.

Overall sales fell from $18.36 billion to $18.25 billion in 2014, also down compared to the $18.56-billion projection made by analysts polled by Thomson Reuters.

However, US revenue was boosted by strong performance by the companys latest drugs, including type two diabetes drug Invokana, blood-thinner Xarelto and psoriasis treatment Stelara.

The company reported a 9.6% increase in pharmaceutical revenue to $8 billion during the quarter, despite a 2.7% decline in non-US sales. Domestic revenue jumped 23% to $4.36 billion, while international sales climbed 5.8%, excluding the unfavorable impact of the stronger US dollar.

Results were also helped by J&J’s hepatitis C treatment Olysio, which was projected to underperform due to increased competition. However, the drug generated $256 million in sales in the US, higher than expected, but lower than the $671 it brought in during the third quarter.

Xarelto was another major contributor to US sales, the drug scored a 58% increase to $428 million, despite also being projected to face tougher competition.

Sales in J&Js consumer segment fell 3.9% to $3.61 billion, including a 2.5% increase in US sales during the fourth quarter. However, the positive domestic results could not offset the impact of foreign-exchange rates.

Revenue from the companys medical-devices unit slipped 9% to $6.65 billion, partly due to unfavorable foreign-exchange rates and partly due to the sale of J&Js Ortho-Clinical Diagnostics business to Carlyle Group for around $4 billion in June.

All-in-all, net income decreased to $2.52 billion, or $0.89 earnings per share, compared to $3.52 billion, or $1.23, a year earlier. Performance was hurt by litigation expenses and acquisition-related costs.

Johnson & Johnson edged up 1.51% higher on Friday and closed at $104.04 in New York. On Tuesday the stock slid 3.07% to $100.85 at 15:48 GMT, marking a one-year increase of 5.81%. The company is valued at $291.22 billion.

According to the Financial Times, the 18 analysts offering 12-month price targets for Johnson & Johnson have a median target of $110.00, with a high estimate of $123.00 and a low estimate of $96.00. The median estimate represents a 5.73% increase from the last close price.