ROCE Insights For Johnson & Johnson

Johnson & Johnson JNJ posted Q2 earnings of $3.99 billion, an increase from Q1 of 31.06%. Sales dropped to $18.34 billion, a 11.38% decrease between quarters. In Q1, Johnson & Johnson earned $5.79 billion, and total sales reached $20.69 billion.

What Is ROCE?

Changes in earnings and sales indicate shifts in Johnson & Johnson’s Return on Capital Employed, a measure of yearly pre-tax profit relative to capital employed in a business. Generally, a higher ROCE suggests successful growth in a company and is a sign of higher earnings per share for shareholders in the future. In Q2, Johnson & Johnson posted an ROCE of 0.06%.

It is important to keep in mind ROCE evaluates past performance and is not used as a predictive tool. It is a good measure of a company's recent performance, but several factors could affect earnings and sales in the near future.

ROCE is an important metric for the comparison of similar companies. A relatively high ROCE shows Johnson & Johnson is potentially operating at a higher level of efficiency than other companies in its industry. If the company is generating high profits with its current level of capital, some of that money can be reinvested in more capital which will lead to higher returns and earnings per share growth.

In Johnson & Johnson's case, the positive ROCE ratio will be something investors pay attention to before making long-term financial decisions.

Q2 Earnings Recap

Johnson & Johnson reported Q2 earnings per share at $1.67/share, which beat analyst predictions of $1.48/share.