Johnson & Johnson
Generic competition hurt the year-over-year comparisons for epilepsy and migraine drug Topamax and antipsychotic medication Risperdal, which both put in ugly showings -- 76% and 40% plunges, respectively. Anemia drugs Procrit and Eprex and ADHD drug Concerta also saw double-digit year-over-year drops because of safety concerns.
Not everything in Johnson & Johnson's medicine bag was falling, though. Sales of anti-inflammatory Remicade rose 5.9%, including a 5.1% increase in exports, which are sold outside the U.S. by Schering-Plough
The company does have a couple of recently approved drugs -- schizophrenia treatment Invega and anti-inflammatory Simponi -- but they're essentially just follow-ons to Risperdal and Remicade, respectively. Instead of boosting overall sales, they may end up cannibalizing sales of their predecessors or, in the case of Invega, have trouble competing against the generics.
In the pipeline, Johnson & Johnson has Xarelto, a preventer of blood clots that would compete with sanofi-aventis'
The stock is suffering today because of the revenue miss, but long-term investors needn't worry too much. Revenue gains will return eventually, and Johnson & Johnson will cut costs, as it did this quarter, to keep earnings headed in the right direction.
