J&J reports $100 million in vaccine sales as results top forecasts

Reuters

Published Apr 20, 2021 06:39

Updated Apr 20, 2021 07:12

(Reuters) -Johnson & Johnson beat expectations for quarterly revenue and profit and raised dividend payouts to shareholders on Tuesday, while reporting $100 million in sales for its COVID-19 vaccine, whose use was paused by U.S. regulators last week.

The company, which has previously said the vaccine will be available on a not-for-profit basis until the end of the pandemic, also tightened its forecast for adjusted profit this year, showing it largely performed as previously expected.

Use of the vaccine was paused last week by U.S. regulators as they review reports of rare but serious blood clots in recipients.

The company now expects full-year adjusted profit of $9.42 to $9.57 per share, compared with its prior forecast of $9.40 to $9.60 per share, after sales in its pharmaceuticals business helped boost overall profit.

Excluding items, the company earned $2.59 per share, beating analysts' estimates of $2.34 per share, according to IBES data from Refinitiv.

Sales of cancer drug Darzalex rose 45.7% to $1.37 billion and sales of Stelara, a treatment for Crohn's disease and plaque psoriasis, rose about 18% to $2.15 billion.

Net earnings rose nearly 7% to $6.20 billion, or $2.32 per share.