J&J expects COVID vaccine sales to jump as much as 46% in 2022 By Reuters

By Manas Mishra and Carl O’Donnell

(Reuters) -Johnson & Johnson on Tuesday forecast as much as $3.5 billion in sales of its COVID-19 vaccine in 2022, a 46% jump for the shot that has fared poorly compared to rivals.

The drugmaker reported sales of $2.39 billion for the COVID shot in 2021, missing its own target of $2.5 billion in a year marked by manufacturing stumbles, safety concerns and uneven demand for the vaccine once touted as a promising tool for inoculating populations in hard-to-reach areas.

Pfizer Inc (NYSE:) by comparison is forecasting $29 billion in 2022 sales of the COVID-19 vaccine it developed with German partner BioNTech SE (NASDAQ:), while Moderna (NASDAQ:) Inc is projecting $18.5 billion in vaccine sales this year.

J&J (NYSE:), the world’s largest healthcare conglomerate, is planning to separate its consumer health unit to focus on its large pharmaceuticals and COVID-battered medical devices units.

J&J forecast total 2022 sales that topped Wall Street estimates. That was mostly driven by its vaccine sales forecast exceeding analysts’ low expectations for the shot J&J sells at a not-for-profit price.

Overall, fourth-quarter sales of $24.80 billion missed analysts’ expectations $25.29 billion, according to Refinitiv data, as big revenue drivers such as cancer drug Imbruvica and Crohn’s disease treatment Stelara came up short.

Imbruvica, which J&J shares with AbbVie Inc (NYSE:), had sales of $1.06 billion, below estimates of $1.17 billion. Stelara sales of $2.33 billion missed estimates of $2.45 billion.

J&J expects to appoint executives for its consumer health unit and announce a new name and headquarters for the business that sells mouth wash, bandages and non-prescription medicines sometime in the first half of 2022, Chief Financial Officer Joseph Wolk said on conference call.

Sales of $6.86 billion for the medical devices segment also missed estimates of $6.98 billion.

J&J Chief Executive Joaquin Duato said he was confident in the recovery of that business as delayed non-urgent procedures come back on track as the latest pandemic surge eases.

Overall, J&J expects 2022 sales of $98.9 billion to $100.4 billion, above Wall Street estimates of $97.79 billion.