We use cookies to understand how you use our site and to improve your experience.
This includes personalizing content and advertising.
By pressing "Accept All" or closing out of this banner, you consent to the use of all cookies and similar technologies and the sharing of information they collect with third parties.
You can reject marketing cookies by pressing "Deny Optional," but we still use essential, performance, and functional cookies.
In addition, whether you "Accept All," Deny Optional," click the X or otherwise continue to use the site, you accept our Privacy Policy and Terms of Service, revised from time to time.
You are being directed to ZacksTrade, a division of LBMZ Securities and licensed broker-dealer. ZacksTrade and Zacks.com are separate companies. The web link between the two companies is not a solicitation or offer to invest in a particular security or type of security. ZacksTrade does not endorse or adopt any particular investment strategy, any analyst opinion/rating/report or any approach to evaluating individual securities.
If you wish to go to ZacksTrade, click OK. If you do not, click Cancel.
JNJ Q1 MedTech Preview: Key Drivers and China Headwinds to Watch
Read MoreHide Full Article
Key Takeaways
J&J's MedTech growth is driven by strong cardiovascular sales and recent acquisitions.
JNJ's Cardiovascular segment rose 15.8% in 2025, boosted by Abiomed and Shockwave deals.
JNJ faces China headwinds from the VBP program, with further impact expected into 2026.
Johnson & Johnson's (JNJ - Free Report) MedTech division, which spans orthopedics, surgery, cardiovascular and vision care, contributes roughly 36% to the company’s total revenues.
J&J is repositioning its MedTech portfolio toward more innovative, faster-growing areas, most notably cardiovascular. Strategic acquisitions, including Shockwave in 2024 and Abiomed in 2022, have strengthened its presence, making it a leader across four of the largest and fastest-growing cardiovascular intervention markets. Reflecting this momentum, J&J’s Cardiovascular sales increased 15.8% to reach $8.9 billion in 2025.
J&J’s MedTech business has improved in the last three quarters, driven by the acquired cardiovascular businesses, Abiomed and Shockwave, as well as Surgical Vision and wound closure in Surgery. Improvements in J&J’s electrophysiology business also drove the growth. MedTech sales rose 4.3% on an organic basis in 2025.
The MedTech segment is expected to continue seeing strong momentum in three focus areas: Cardiovascular, Surgery and Vision in the first quarter, backed by increased adoption of newly launched products across all three segments.
However, the company continues to face headwinds in China. Sales in China are being hurt by the impact of the volume-based procurement (VBP) program, which is a government-driven cost containment effort in China. Sales in China are likely to have been hurt by the impact of the VBP program in the first quarter.
Last year, J&J announced its intention to separate its Orthopaedics franchise into a standalone orthopedics-focused company called DePuy Synthes. The Orthopaedics franchise has been a slow-growth business for J&J. It had earlier said it expects a transaction to happen around mid-2027. An update is expected on the first-quarter conference call.
On the conference call, investors will also look for updates on the MedTech unit’s outlook for 2026. In January, J&J had said it expects better growth in the MedTech segment in 2026 than 2025 levels, driven by increased adoption of newly launched products across Cardiovascular, Surgery and Vision portfolios. It also expects some additional rounds of VBP impact in China in 2026.
J&J’s Key Competitors in the Medical Devices Market
J&J’s MedTech unit faces strong competition from several major players in the medical device industry, like Medtronic (MDT - Free Report) , Abbott, Stryker (SYK - Free Report) and Boston Scientific (BSX - Free Report) .
While Medtronic has a strong presence in cardiovascular, neuroscience and surgical technologies, Stryker is a global leader in medical technology, specializing in innovative solutions across surgical, neurotechnology, orthopedics and spine care. Boston Scientific markets products for cardiovascular, endoscopy, urology and neuromodulation. Abbott is known for its medical device products across cardiovascular, diagnostics and diabetes care.
JNJ’s Price Performance, Valuation and Estimates
J&J’s shares have outperformed the industry over the past year. The stock has risen 52.8% in the past year compared with15.9% appreciation of the industry.
Image Source: Zacks Investment Research
From a valuation standpoint, J&J is slightly expensive. Going by the price/earnings ratio, the company’s shares currently trade at 20.75 forward earnings, higher than 17.24 for the industry. The stock is also trading above its five-year mean of 15.65.
Image Source: Zacks Investment Research
The Zacks Consensus Estimate for 2026 earnings has been stable at $11.54 per share over the past 60 days, while that for 2027 earnings has gone up from $12.40 per share to $12.44 over the same time frame.
View the Zacks #1 Rank List
Image: Bigstock
JNJ Q1 MedTech Preview: Key Drivers and China Headwinds to Watch
Key Takeaways
Johnson & Johnson's (JNJ - Free Report) MedTech division, which spans orthopedics, surgery, cardiovascular and vision care, contributes roughly 36% to the company’s total revenues.
J&J is repositioning its MedTech portfolio toward more innovative, faster-growing areas, most notably cardiovascular. Strategic acquisitions, including Shockwave in 2024 and Abiomed in 2022, have strengthened its presence, making it a leader across four of the largest and fastest-growing cardiovascular intervention markets. Reflecting this momentum, J&J’s Cardiovascular sales increased 15.8% to reach $8.9 billion in 2025.
J&J’s MedTech business has improved in the last three quarters, driven by the acquired cardiovascular businesses, Abiomed and Shockwave, as well as Surgical Vision and wound closure in Surgery. Improvements in J&J’s electrophysiology business also drove the growth. MedTech sales rose 4.3% on an organic basis in 2025.
The MedTech segment is expected to continue seeing strong momentum in three focus areas: Cardiovascular, Surgery and Vision in the first quarter, backed by increased adoption of newly launched products across all three segments.
However, the company continues to face headwinds in China. Sales in China are being hurt by the impact of the volume-based procurement (VBP) program, which is a government-driven cost containment effort in China. Sales in China are likely to have been hurt by the impact of the VBP program in the first quarter.
Last year, J&J announced its intention to separate its Orthopaedics franchise into a standalone orthopedics-focused company called DePuy Synthes. The Orthopaedics franchise has been a slow-growth business for J&J. It had earlier said it expects a transaction to happen around mid-2027. An update is expected on the first-quarter conference call.
On the conference call, investors will also look for updates on the MedTech unit’s outlook for 2026. In January, J&J had said it expects better growth in the MedTech segment in 2026 than 2025 levels, driven by increased adoption of newly launched products across Cardiovascular, Surgery and Vision portfolios. It also expects some additional rounds of VBP impact in China in 2026.
J&J’s Key Competitors in the Medical Devices Market
J&J’s MedTech unit faces strong competition from several major players in the medical device industry, like Medtronic (MDT - Free Report) , Abbott, Stryker (SYK - Free Report) and Boston Scientific (BSX - Free Report) .
While Medtronic has a strong presence in cardiovascular, neuroscience and surgical technologies, Stryker is a global leader in medical technology, specializing in innovative solutions across surgical, neurotechnology, orthopedics and spine care. Boston Scientific markets products for cardiovascular, endoscopy, urology and neuromodulation. Abbott is known for its medical device products across cardiovascular, diagnostics and diabetes care.
JNJ’s Price Performance, Valuation and Estimates
J&J’s shares have outperformed the industry over the past year. The stock has risen 52.8% in the past year compared with15.9% appreciation of the industry.
From a valuation standpoint, J&J is slightly expensive. Going by the price/earnings ratio, the company’s shares currently trade at 20.75 forward earnings, higher than 17.24 for the industry. The stock is also trading above its five-year mean of 15.65.
The Zacks Consensus Estimate for 2026 earnings has been stable at $11.54 per share over the past 60 days, while that for 2027 earnings has gone up from $12.40 per share to $12.44 over the same time frame.
J&J has a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy) at present. You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank (Strong Buy) stocks here.