JNJ Stock: Ignore STELARA Drag at Your Own Risk
Johnson & Johnson's (JNJ) stock has been performing well over the past year, increasing by about 53% compared to a 17% rise in the S&P 500. However, management has pointed out that sales growth is not as strong as it appears due to a drag from STELARA, which fell 55.7% in the second quarter of 2026.
According to management, STELARA's decline had a 460 basis point headwind on the company's overall sales growth, which still rose by 5.6%. To put this into perspective, if STELARA's sales were excluded from the calculation, the company's operational sales growth would be significantly higher.
Management is encouraging investors to look beyond STELARA and focus on the company's underlying momentum, which they claim is stronger than it seems. Two products that are filling the gap left by STELARA are TREMFYA, which booked $2 billion in sales in the second quarter of 2026 with a growth rate of over 70%, and ICOTYDE, a once-daily pill for psoriasis.