Johnson & Johnson third quarter beats analysts’ forecasts boosted by new Rx drugs

US health care giant Johnson & Johnson (NYSE: JNJ) kicked off the third-quarter 2013 pharma financial results reporting period, posting sales of $17.6 billion, an increase of 3.1% compared to the third quarter of 2012, beating analysts’ consensus forecasts of $17.4 billion and pushing the firm’s shares up nearly 1% to $90.68 in early trading.

Net earnings and diluted earnings per share for the third quarter of 2013 were $3.0 billion and $1.04, respectively. The third quarter results included after-tax special items of around $900,000 million, primarily related to an increase in the accrual for litigation expenses, in-process research and development expense, and integration and transaction costs related to the acquisition of Synthes. Excluding these special items, net earnings for the current quarter were $3.9 billion and diluted EPS was $1.36, representing increases of 11.3% and 8.8%, respectively, and also beating analysts’ expectations of EPS at $1.32.