Johnson & Johnson (JNJ) is showing that life after blockbuster drugs like Stelara can still be pretty good — as long as you have a deep pipeline and a fast-growing MedTech business to pick up the slack.
The healthcare giant reported second-quarter 2026 results Wednesday that beat Wall Street estimates on both the top and bottom lines. Adjusted earnings came in at $2.90 per share, up 4.7% from a year ago and ahead of the $2.85 analysts were looking for. Revenue hit $25.31 billion, a 6.6% increase that also topped the $25.05 billion consensus. On an operational basis — stripping out currency swings — sales grew 5.6%.
The numbers tell a story of a company successfully transitioning away from older products that are losing steam, toward newer therapies and devices that are gaining traction.
Innovative Medicine: Oncology Leads the Way
J&J's Innovative Medicine segment posted sales of $16.38 billion, up 7.8% (6.8% operationally). The growth was powered by oncology drugs like Darzalex, Carvykti, Tecvayli, and Rybrevant/Lazcluze, along with immunology drug Tremfya and neuroscience treatments Spravato and Caplyta.
Cancer drugs alone climbed 17.3% to $7.41 billion. Immunology, however, fell 3.7% to $3.84 billion, dragged down by Stelara — which is facing biosimilar competition — and declines in Remicade, Imbruvica, and Zytiga. Stelara's drop alone shaved about 760 basis points off the segment's growth rate.
MedTech: Steady Expansion
MedTech sales rose 4.5% to $8.93 billion (3.6% operationally), driven by strong demand for wound closure and biosurgery products, electrophysiology devices, Shockwave cardiovascular products, contact lenses, and trauma products.
One soft spot: Abiomed, which J&J acquired in 2022, saw sales decline 2% to $440 million due to lower U.S. procedure volumes. But international growth, including adoption of the Impella 5.5 heart pump, helped offset some of the weakness.
Raising the Bar for 2026
CEO Joaquin Duato said the company's raised outlook and quarterly sales above $25 billion keep it on track to exceed $100 billion in annual revenue for the first time in its 140-year history.
J&J now expects full-year 2026 adjusted earnings of $11.60 to $11.75 per share, up from its prior range of $11.45 to $11.65. The new forecast sits above the analyst consensus of $11.59. The company also lifted its sales guidance to $100.8 billion to $101.4 billion, from $100.3 billion to $101.3 billion, compared with the consensus estimate of $101.02 billion.
Shares were up 0.69% at $255.60 in Wednesday trading.
