Johnson & Johnson’s executive team is confident. Not only could the company overcome a massive sales loss from competition-laden Stelara, it could also reach an annual revenue of $100 billion for the first time in 2026.
On a first-quarter earnings call, leaders at J&J discussed how they plan to hit that lofty goal while maintaining momentum for more growth down the line.
Here, we’re exploring some of the statements made during this week’s earnings report and what they mean for the health juggernaut’s future returns.
“We are on track to meet our 2026 target of $100 billion in annual revenue for the first time. And we are confident our progress will continue to improve into 2027, with line of sight to double-digit growth by the end of the decade.”
Joaquin Duato
CEO, Johnson & Johnson
Johnson & Johnson’s $100 billion revenue push in 2026 is underway, according to CEO Joaquin Duato. And that’s just the beginning. Duato also said the pharma titan is banking on 28 different assets with blockbuster sales, and more on the way if all goes to plan.
Ten of those brands showed double-digit sales growth during the first quarter, Duato pointed out. And they’re all helping to recover losses tied to immunology powerhouse Stelara’s flagging sales from biosimilar entry.
Multiple myeloma treatments Darzalex, Carvykti, Tecvayli and Talvey have made oncology one of J&J’s largest areas. And psoriasis drug Tremfya chalked up sales growth of 64% with projections to reach $10 billion in peak annual sales.
Newly launched drugs like the bladder cancer treatment Inlexzo and the immunology pill Icotyde have gotten off to a good start, Duato said, with the latter having “the potential to be one of our largest products ever.”
“We are investing big in Icotyde to make sure that this brand can do all that it can do for patients. We're investing to win in this area.”
Jennifer Taubert
Executive vice president, worldwide chairman, innovative medicine at Johnson & Johnson
Icotyde, approved in March, is one of J&J’s most recent launches, and the company is putting a lot of stock in its future, according to head of the pharmaceutical division Jennifer Taubert. Partnered with Protagonist Therapeutics, the immunology drug is the first oral peptide that blocks the IL-23 pathway, giving psoriasis patients a needle-free alternative.
Taubert has high hopes for Icotyde’s growth prospects and its ability to fill Stelara’s massive shoes. While the pharma business grew 7.4% operationally in the first quarter, excluding the losses from Stelara brings the number up to 16.6%, demonstrating the hole left behind.
CEO Duato added that as many as 80% of patients who are eligible for a biologic aren’t taking one, signaling a market opportunity with a convenient and effective pill like Icotyde.
“We have been ahead of the curve in our investments in M&A with the acquisitions during the last two-and-a-half years of Abiomed, Shockwave and Intra-Cellular. Our sweet spot remains early-stage deals.”
Joaquin Duato
CEO, Johnson & Johnson
While J&J is focused on investing in its current slate of products and R&D candidates, Duato said the company is ready to reach into its deep pockets for the right acquisition. He pointed to last year’s purchase of cancer drugmaker Halda Therapeutics as an example of the kind of early-stage deals J&J would be most likely to pursue.
The company has performed a series of deals over the last few years, bolstering several of its business arms with immunology acquisitions of Proteologix and Yellow Jersey Therapeutics, oncology purchases of Ambrx Biopharma and Halda, as well as a $14.6 billion deal to acquire central nervous system drugmaker Intra-Cellular Therapies.
But Duato also made clear that J&J’s outlook for growth comes entirely from its current portfolio and that any M&A would be opportunistic as opposed to need-based.
“This really represents the best of Johnson & Johnson, and something that only a company like Johnson & Johnson with both an innovative medicine and a medtech business can do and bring to market.”
Joseph Wolk
CFO, Johnson & Johnson
J&J has slimmed down over the last few years by selling off its consumer and orthopedic units, but the company is holding onto its medtech division, which offers a unique device synergy with some of its therapeutics that other companies would have to outsource.
Inlexzo, approved in September last year, is “just the beginning” of J&J’s innovations in bladder cancer, according to CFO Joseph Wolk, and the company is combining pharma and device forces for its next go at the disease. An early-stage study of the small molecule erdafitinib that read out in March showed that a new intravesical drug-releasing system allows prolonged release over three months, which cuts back on the risk of side effects.
As one of the largest health companies in the world, J&J’s diverse portfolio allows for integration that’s more than the sum of its parts, and executives said this differentiation from its Big Pharma peers will help deliver the growth they’re promising.
