Johnson & Johnson (JNJ) Earnings Report: Sales Fall Short As Dollar Hurts Revenue

Johnson & Johnson, the world’s largest maker of healthcare products, posted earnings on Tuesday that failed to meet expectations on Wall Street. Sales last quarter declined 2.4 percent compared with the same period in 2014, weakened by a strong dollar.

The New Jersey-based company — known for its baby shampoo, Band-Aids, prescription medicines and medical devices — generated nearly half of its sales last year outside the United States. Revenue last quarter was $17.81 billion, just shy of analysts’ expectations of $17.94 billion.

The company’s profit climbed by nearly 28 percent to $3.22 billion, or $1.15 per share, during the final quarter of 2015. That fell short of analysts’ average estimate of $1.42 per share.

On an adjusted basis, the company earned $1.44 per share. It sounded an optimistic note Tuesday.

“Johnson & Johnson delivered strong underlying growth in 2015, driven by the performance of our pharmaceutical business and iconic brands,” the company’s chairman and CEO, Alex Gorsky, said in a statement. “As we enter 2016, our core business is very healthy, and the recent decisive actions we’ve taken in support of each of our businesses position us well to drive sustainable long-term growth, faster than the markets we compete in.”

Last week, the company announced it would restructure its medical device business and cut 3,000 jobs globally in the division over the next two years. The layoffs are related to the company’s orthopedics, surgery and cardiovascular operations, a Johnson & Johnson spokesman told Reuters, but will not immediately result in the elimination of any products.

As the Associated Press noted, the job cuts mark a contrast from just a few years ago, when medical device sales were the company’s top-grossing business segment.

Johnson & Johnson stock was up around 3 percent Tuesday morning, trading at over $99 per share.