Johnson & Johnson (JNJ -1.15%) is considered by many to be a safe stock that works well in portfolios of retirees and risk-averse investors. The pharmaceutical giant pays an above-average dividend yield of 2.6%, and it has increased its payouts annually for 60 consecutive years.
But I'm here today to make the case that Johnson & Johnson (J&J) is being underrated and should be grouped with the growth stock out there. The company has a diverse revenue stream with several divisions posting outsized growth, and it's making moves to maintain that growth over the next few years.
Let's take a closer look at why J&J should get due consideration from growth-oriented investors.
J&J expects pharma revenue to hit $60 billion by 2025
This healthcare conglomerate's business is fairly diverse, generating billions in revenue from its consumer health, pharmaceutical, and medtech businesses. Its pharmaceutical segment is far and away its largest revenue generator, representing more than half of the company's overall sales.
For the third quarter (which ended Sept. 30), pharmaceutical revenue totaled $13.2 billion, accounting for 56% of the $23.8 billion in total sales. The pharma segment's Q3 sales grew a modest 2.6% year over year. Its top-selling drugs were psoriasis medication Stelara and cancer treatment Darzalex, which each managed more than $2 billion in quarterly sales.
Annually, the company's pharma revenue over the trailing 12 months was about $53.7 billion. But J&J is expecting that its annual sales from that part of its business will top $60 billion by 2025 -- representing a 12% increase from where it is right now. Johnson & Johnson says it has 14 new drug therapies that have the potential to be blockbusters and bring in more than $1 billion each in annual revenue. Some of its most promising products in the drug approval pipeline, including blood clot medication milvexian, could top $5 billion annually.
These growth projections factor in a decline in revenue from current revenue-generator Stelara, which loses exclusivity in the U.S. market next year. That's a positive sign, as the increase in revenue should help offset the loss of its consumer health business, which Johnson & Johnson plans to spin off into a separate entity in 2023.
A new acquisition could bolster its medtech business
Another key part of its future is J&J's medtech business, which includes the company's medical devices. This segment accounts for more than one-quarter of J&J's top line. On Tuesday, the company announced plans to acquire medical device maker Abiomed (ABMD) for $16.6 billion to expand that business unit. Abiomed is known for its Impella heart pumps, which over the past four quarters have helped the company generate more than $1 billion in revenue.
The acquisition will help expand Johnson & Johnson's medtech portfolio and improve its pipeline for that segment. Last quarter, J&J's medtech's sales of $6.8 billion rose by 2.1% year over year. Adding Abiomed's products could help strengthen that growth rate as J&J management noted in the press release announcing the deal that, "Abiomed operates in one of the fastest growing medtech segments with significant expansion opportunities in indication, geography, and product."
Moving away from consumer health could help J&J focus on growth
Spinning off its consumer health business could be incredibly advantageous to J&J's business in the long haul. It is a business segment that has had its share of challenges in recent years. Last year, the company issued voluntary recalls on multiple sunscreen products that contained benzene. And it faces tens of thousands of lawsuits relating to cancer-causing contaminants in its talc baby powder products. For a segment that generates the least amount of annual revenue ($14.8 billion over the past 12 months), it may simply not be worth the headaches that come along with it.
By spinning off consumer health, Johnson & Johnson's business becomes more focused and more efficient. And that focus may offer it more growth potential in the long run.
Should growth investors buy Johnson & Johnson stock?
A 13% growth rate in its pharma business through 2025 likely isn't going to have growth investors rushing out to buy Johnson & Johnson stock. But in the bigger picture, with the company being more focused on growth and development in its pharma business, that could lead to significant gains down the road.
Trading at just 17 times its future profits (based on analyst expectations), Johnson & Johnson's valuation is in line with the average healthcare stock. But given that this is one of the top healthcare companies in the world with some exciting growth prospects on the horizon, it's arguably worth more of a premium. Because of its already large size, it will be hard to grow sales exponentially (or even double), but Johnson & Johnson does make for a solid growth stock to hold, particularly for risk-averse growth stock investors.
