Johnson & Johnson shares hit a fresh all-time high on Tuesday as third-quarter earnings beat estimates, full-year forecast revised up

Johnson & Johnsons third-quarter earnings, reported yesterday, outstripped market expectations, supported by strong performance at the companys pharmaceuticals segment. J&J also revised up its full-year earnings forecast due to potentially stronger demand for its new cancer drugs.

Johnson & Johnson shares closed higher for the eleventh time in the past thirteen trading sessions on Tuesday. It has also been the steepest daily surge since January 26th 2016. The stock went up 3.43% ($4.67) to $140.79, after touching an intraday high at $141.12 and also a fresh all-time high.

In the week ended on October 15th the shares of the health care product manufacturer added 2.41% to their market value compared to a week ago, which marked a second consecutive period of gains.

The stock has extended its advance to 8.29% so far during the current month, following a 1.78% slump in September. The latter has been a second consecutive monthly loss and also the largest one since November 2016.

For the entire past year, the shares of the NYSE-listed company rose 12.16%. The stock has gained another 22.20% so far in 2017.

Johnson & Johnsons revenue from its pharmaceuticals segment went up 15.4% to $9.7 billion during the latest quarter compared to the same period a year ago, with almost half of the growth being a result of the $30-billion acquisition of Actelion earlier in 2017.

At the same time, sales at the companys consumer products segment were reported to have increased 2.9% year-on-year to $3.4 billion during the third quarter.

Johnson & Johnsons net earnings were reported to have shrunk to $3.76 billion ($1.37 per share) during the third quarter from $4.27 billion ($1.53 per share) during the same period a year ago, as a result of amortization and deal-related expenditures.

On the other hand, the companys adjusted earnings per share, excluding special items, went up 13% year-on-year to $1.90 during the latest quarter. In comparison, the median forecast by analysts had pointed to adjusted earnings of $1.80 per share, data by Thomson Reuters showed.

Meanwhile, Johnson & Johnson boosted its full-year 2017 earnings forecast to a range between $7.25 and $7.30 per share, due to potentially stronger demand for its Darzalex and Imbruvica blood cancer drugs as well as for Actelions rare diseases treatments. The company had expected earnings of $7.12 to $7.22 per share previously.

J&J now projects full-year 2017 revenue ranging between $76.1 billion and $76.5 billion.

According to CNN Money, the 22 analysts, offering 12-month forecasts regarding Johnson & Johnson’s stock price, have a median target of $141.00, with a high estimate of $150.00 and a low estimate of $110.00. The median estimate is a 0.15% surge compared to the closing price of $140.79 on October 17th.

The same media also reported that 11 out of 25 surveyed investment analysts had rated Johnson & Johnson’s stock as “Hold”, while 9 – as “Buy”. On the other hand, 2 analysts had recommended selling the stock.

Daily and Weekly Pivot Levels

With the help of the Camarilla calculation method, todays levels of importance for the Johnson & Johnson stock are presented as follows:

R1 – $141.16
R2 – $141.53
R3 (Range Resistance – Sell) – $141.89
R4 (Long Breakout) – $143.00
R5 (Breakout Target 1) – $144.28
R6 (Breakout Target 2) – $144.91

S1 – $140.42
S2 – $140.05
S3 (Range Support – Buy) – $139.69
S4 (Short Breakout) – $138.58
S5 (Breakout Target 1) – $137.30
S6 (Breakout Target 2) – $136.67

By using the traditional method of calculation, the weekly levels of importance for Johnson & Johnson (JNJ) are presented as follows:

Central Pivot Point – $135.62
R1 – $138.33
R2 – $140.22
R3 – $142.93
R4 – $145.63

S1 – $133.73
S2 – $131.02
S3 – $129.13
S4 – $127.23