Johnson & Johnson raises 2026 guidance; Q3 net earnings fall to $210 million
Johnson & Johnson reported third-quarter 2026 sales up 5.9% to $25.4 billion, but net earnings fell 95.9% to $210 million after a one-time special charge for the proposed talc litigation resolution. Adjusted EPS fell 7.5% to $2.59, and the company raised its full-year 2026 adjusted EPS guidance midpoint to $11.10, which matters to shareholders because the higher outlook is offset by a large reported charge and lower adjusted profit.
Key points
- Q3 2026 reported sales were $25,399 million, up 5.9% from $23,993 million; net earnings were $210 million versus $5,152 million, and diluted EPS was $0.09 versus $2.12.
- Adjusted diluted EPS was $2.59 versus $2.80 a year earlier, down 7.5%.
- Full-year 2026 adjusted EPS guidance midpoint rose to $11.10 from $11.04 in July 2026; estimated reported sales midpoint is $101.2 billion.
- Other (income) expense, net was $5,780 million in the quarter, reflecting the talc litigation charge, the Firefly Bio acquisition and the Sail Biomedicines collaboration.
The filing
Written by AI (Anthropic Claude, claude-haiku-5-5) on Nov 8, 2026, 2:16 AM ET, from the text of the filing and its press-release exhibits only. Written later: this filing was briefed after the fact, when past filings were added to the site, so the brief may be read with hindsight; the filing itself is the record of what was known on October 13, 2026.
Briefs are written by AI from the filing text (each brief's own page names the model) and can contain mistakes — open the filing before acting on anything. Impact (1-5) and tone are the model's reading of the filing for shareholders, not a price forecast. Not investment advice.