Johnson & Johnson (NYSE:JNJ) managed to post a 7.5 percent boost to its bottom line despite flat second-quarter sales, but saw its stock slide on lowered guidance from problems with its over-the-counter drug unit.
The New Brunswick, N.J.-based health products conglomerate’s medical device and diagnostics business posted sales of $6.13 billion, up 4.1 percent compared with $5.89 billion during the same period last year.
Johnson & Johnson posted total Q2 net earnings of $3.45 billion, or $1.23 per diluted share, on sales of $15.33 billion. That compares with net earnings of $3.21 billion, or $1.15 per diluted share, on sales of $15.24 billion during Q2 2009.
The company lowered its full-year guidance to $4.65 to $4.75 per sharedown from $4.80 to $4.90 per share, citing “the impact of the voluntary recalls announced earlier this year of certain over-the-counter medicines and the suspension of manufacturing at the McNeil Consumer Healthcare facility in Fort Washington, Pa.," and unfavorable foreign currency exchange rates, according to a press release.
JNJ’s Cordis stents division continued to flag, posting worldwide sales of $655 million, down 2.8 percent compared with $674 million during Q2 2009. The company chalked the decline up to "continued competition in the drug-eluting stent market," according to the release. Other segments of its medical device division fared better, including its Ethicon and Ethicon Endo-Surgery units, which posted sales increases of 8.7 percent and 7.3 percent, respectively. Here’s a breakdown of each unit’s performance within the division:
| MEDICAL DEVICES AND DIAGNOSTICS | Q2 2010 | Q2 2009 | % Change |
| Cordis: | $655 million | $674 million | -2.8% |
| DePuy: | $1.38 billion | $1.32 billion | 3.9% |
| Diabetes Care: | $616 million | $610 million | 1.0% |
| Ethicon: | $1.13 billion | $1.04 billion | 8.7% |
| Ethicon Endo-Surgery: | $1.20 billion | $1.12 billion | 7.3% |
| Ortho-Clinical Diagnostics: | $494 million | $494 million | 0.0% |
| Vision Care: | $662 million | $630 million | 5.1% |
| TOTAL: | $6.13 billion | $5.89 billion | 4.1% |
The division made a key acquisition and a divestiture during the quarter, selling off Ethicon Endo-Care’s breast care business to Devicor Medical Products Inc. for an undisclosed amount and agreeing to drop $480 million on Micrus Endovascular Corp. (NSDQ:MEND), which makes cerebral vascular devices.
JNJ shares were down nearly 1.5 percent to $59.57 in early-morning trading.
