Johnson and Johnson’s second-quarter spreadsheet showed sales jumped 8.5% to $17.8 billion for the quarter, compared to $16.4 for the same period last year. Sales for the first six months of the year were also up 8.5%, hitting $35.3 billion, compared to $32.6 for the same period the year before. The uptick translated into a jump in profits—$3.8 billion for the quarter, and $7.3 billion for the six-month period—but as noted by Forbes, these numbers lose some of their heft due to “a brutal 2012” benchmark. Selling its share in Elan helped bolster the company’s results.
Quarter standouts included an 8% bump in US consumer sales to $7.9 billion, compared to $7.3 billion for the same period last year. Numbers for the six-month mark were $15.9 billion in US sales compared to $14.5 billion and $35.3 billion in worldwide sales compared to $32.6 billion for the same period last year.
Over-the-counter sales rebounded, rising 5.4% worldwide to $931 million for the quarter, compared to $883 million for the same period last year. The company’s pharmaceutical lineup included a 4% bump in Remicade sales to $926 million, compared to $890 million for the quarter ($1.6 billion worldwide compared to $1.5 billion), while Simponi sales rose 38% to $87 million for the quarter compared to $63 million ($175 million worldwide compared to $125 million) and Stelara sales jumped over 53% in the US to $233 million compared to $152 million ($371 million worldwide compared to $248 million).
