J&J's net declines by 5.3% to $12.3 billion during 2009

Johnson & Johnson (J&J) has suffered setback during the year ended December 2009 on account of litigation matters and lower sales. The company's net earnings declined by 5.3 per cent to US$12,266 million from $12,949 million in the previous year. Its worldwide net sales declined by 2.9 per cent to $61,897 million from $63,747 million. The company's sales in US declined by 4.4 per cent to $30,889 million from $32,309 million and that in international markets declined by 1.4 per cent to $31,008 million from 31,438 million. Its total pharmaceutical sales declined by 8.3 per cent to $22,520 million from $24,567 million in the last year. Out of this its US pharmaceutical sales went down by 12.1 per cent to $13,041 million from $14,831 million and that from international operations declined by 2.6 per cent to $9,479 million from $9,736 million. The sales of Topmax, an antiepileptic and treatment for migraine, and Risperdal, an antipsychotic medication, declined due to stiff competition from generic. J&J submitted a New Drug Application to the US FDA for tapentadol extended release tablets, an investigational oral analgesic for the management of moderate to severe chronic pain in patients of 18 years of age or older. The sales of Remicade moved up by 14.8 per cent to $4,304 million from $3,748 million and that of Procrit/Eprex declined by 8.7 per cent to $2,245 million from $2,460 million in the previous year. Further sales of Levaquin/Floxin also declined by 2.6 per cent to $1,550 million. The sales of medical devices & diagnostic division improved marginally by 1.9 per cent to $23,574 million from $23,126 million, of which US sales improved by 4.5 per cent to $11,011 million from $10,541 million. The consumer division recorded lower sales of $15,803 million as compared to $16,054 million in the last year. William C Weldon, chairman and CEO, said, “In a year of tremendous challenge, we maintained our long-term focus while delivering solid results – a great tribute to the employees of J&J. We made important investments in acquisitions, strategic partnerships and launches of recently-approved innovative products while preserving our financial flexibility to continue to invest in innovation. This positions us well for continued leadership and growth in global health care as we enter 2010.” J&J completed the acquisition of Acclarent , Inc., a privately held medical technology company dedicated to designing, developing and commercializing devices that address conditions affecting the ear, nose and throat. Further it also acquired Finsbury Orthopaedics Ltd, a privately held UK-based manufacturer and global distributor of orthopaedic implants and Gloster Europe, a privately held developer of innovative disinfection processes and technologies to prevent healthcare-acquired infections.