Johnson & Johnson (JNJ) looks like it may need to take some Motrin to stave of the public-relations headache it's facing. Oh wait ... maybe that's not such a good idea. Motrin is the problem.

It turns out Johnson & Johnson learned about some problems with its Motrin formulas in November 2008. But instead of issuing a recall and letting the public know of the problem, Johnson & Johnson hired an outside contractor to go around and collect samples to see if the company should issue a full recall. Oops.

Continue reading Motrin Causes More Headaches for Johnson & Johnson

Motrin Causes More Headaches for Johnson & Johnson originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Thu, 27 May 2010 17:15:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Continue reading Closing Bell: The Much-Needed Pullback Begins, Maybe (JPM, INTC, JNJ, PAA, BARE, SQNM)

Closing Bell: The Much-Needed Pullback Begins, Maybe (JPM, INTC, JNJ, PAA, BARE, SQNM) originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Fri, 15 Jan 2010 16:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Dow member Johnson & Johnson (JNJ) is expanding its voluntary recall of Tylenol Arthritis Pain Caplets, due to consumer reports of an unusual moldy odor emanating from the pill bottles. J&J previously recalled five lots of the over-the-counter painkiller, but the recall has now been expanded to all product lots of the Arthritis Pain Caplet 100-count bottles with the red EZ-Open cap.

The musty odor, according to Johnson & Johnson, can be traced back to a chemical known as 2,4,6-tribromoanisole, which results from the breakdown of a different chemical in wooden pallets used in transporting and storage. J&J will resume production of the 100-count Arthritis Pain Caplets in January, after relocating production to a new facility.

Continue reading Johnson & Johnson Recalling Tainted Tylenol Bottles

Johnson & Johnson Recalling Tainted Tylenol Bottles originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Tue, 29 Dec 2009 12:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

This post is part of our Battle of the Brands feature. Let us know which brand you prefer, and check out other Battle of the Brands posts.

Tylenol is probably the most recognizable brand name for the pain reliever acetaminophen. In addition to being a pain reliever, Tylenol also reduces fevers. It was created in 1955 as Tylenol Elixir for children, and was the first aspirin-free pain reliever. It was initially available only by prescription, but became available without a prescription in 1960.

The product is made and marketed by McNeil Consumer Healthcare, a brand owned by Johnson & Johnson (NYSE: JNJ). Tylenol falls within the Consumer segment of J&J, which had sales of $14.5 billion in 2007. Over-the-counter pharmaceuticals represented $5.1 billion in sales, or 35% of the segment's sales.

Excedrin is a pain reliever that combines acetaminophen, aspirin, and caffeine. (Caffeine is known to enhance the effectiveness of aspirin and acetaminophen.) It's a product of Novartis (NYSE: NVS), a Switzerland-based company that bought the Bristol-Myers Squibb (NYSE: BMY) consumer medicine business in 2005. Novartis produces a variety of consumer health care products, with 2007 revenue of $39.8 billion.

Continue reading Battle of the Brands: Tylenol vs. Excedrin

Battle of the Brands: Tylenol vs. Excedrin originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Wed, 07 May 2008 19:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Johnson & Johnson Inc. (NYSE:JNJ) will report earnings for the fourth quarter on January 23rd. It looks like it will be able to meet expectations but I don't think it will raise guidance.

JNJ is 230 separate companies in fields ranging from bandages to pharmaceuticals. With $52 billion in sales and $11 billion in profits, it's best known for its corporate citizenship. As I noted in Value Leadership, JNJ put its credo to the test in 1982 when seven people died in Chicago after ingesting cyanide-laced Tylenol. JNJ immediately pulled all the bottles from stores around the country and reintroduced the product with tamper-proof seals six weeks later. The decision to pull the 31 million bottles at a cost of $100 million was made by managers without consulting the CEO, who was unreachable in an airplane at the time.

Eighteen analysts who cover JNJ expect it to earn 80 cents a share in the fourth quarter and $3.74 for the full year 2006. These estimates are 8.9% and 6.9% higher, respectively, than during the same period in 2005. According to Forbes, The Goldman Sachs Group (NYSE: GS) believes that JNJ is likely to be able to weather the storm that will take place in mid-2007 due to a Medicare Drug Benefit anniversary which is anticipated to dampen volume growth. Goldman believes that with its June 2006 $16.6 billion acquisition of Pfizer Inc.'s (NYSE: PFE) Consumer Healthcare business -- which features strong brands such as Listerine and Nicorette -- JNJ will suffer less than pure-play pharmaceutical companies.

But at a P/E of 18, JNJ is trading 2.7 times higher than its forecast earnings growth rate of 6.7%. An earnings miss or tepid guidance could poison JNJ stock. Will JNJ miss-and-lower, meet-and-maintain, or beat-and-raise?

Peter Cohan is President of Peter S. Cohan & Associates, a management consulting and venture capital firm, a Professor of Management at Babson College, and editor of The Cohan Letter. He has no financial interest in Goldman Sachs, Johnson & Johnson. or Pfizer securities.

Also check out some other earnings reports that we're following, and let us know your thoughts on earnings expectations.

Can Johnson & Johnson beat and raise? originally appeared on BloggingStocks on Fri, 19 Jan 2007 15:50:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.