J&J Delivers, Stock Rallies

Pharmaceutical giant Johnson & Johnson reported a 13% increase in profits on Tuesday and again raised its outlook for the full year. In the US, performance was mixed, but worldwide J&J saw a 10.5% increase in sales. J&J continues to deliver despite the well-known troubles in the pharma segment. Its diversified approach is one of its key strengths and should allow it to weather the storm that is coming as patent expirations loom. When many other pharma giants let go of their consumer products and diagnostics divisions in the late 90s, J&J stuck to its model and is now reaping the benefits. Short-term investors may want to consider taking some profits at this stage, but long-term, we continue to like J&J.