New York, Jan 14, 2026, 11:23 EST — Regular session
- Shares of Johnson & Johnson climbed close to 2% by late morning, bucking the broader market’s downward trend.
- A Delaware Supreme Court decision may reduce the damages linked to the Auris Health surgical robotics agreement.
- Investors are keeping an eye on developments in talc litigation and the upcoming quarterly earnings next week.
Johnson & Johnson shares climbed 1.9% to $217.80 by late morning Wednesday, defying the SPDR S&P 500 ETF, which dipped roughly 1%.
Healthcare outperformed the broader market. The Health Care Select Sector SPDR ETF edged up slightly, with Merck, Pfizer, and AbbVie each adding about 0.6%, 0.6%, and 0.5%, respectively.
Shares are climbing again amid fresh legal developments ahead of next week’s earnings. Delaware’s Supreme Court on Monday threw out part of a September 2024 ruling over “milestone” payments tied to J&J’s $3.4 billion Auris Health acquisition in 2019. The court’s move could trim damages by “a couple of hundred million dollars” once a lower court revisits the calculations. J&J welcomed the decision, saying it corrected the trial judge’s “improper substitution” regarding regulatory milestones. Fortis Advisors’ attorney Philippe Selendy pushed back, claiming the ruling exposes J&J’s “inexcusable breach” of the merger pact. J&J’s Q4 earnings call is set for Jan. 21 at 8:30 a.m. ET. 1
J&J is pushing a New Jersey appellate panel to remove plaintiffs’ firm Beasley Allen from a leadership role in talc litigation, Bloomberg Law reports. Peter G. Verniero, a former New Jersey Supreme Court justice now with Sills Cummis & Gross, argued that ethics rules would be “effectively neutralized” if parties had to prove shared confidences. Beasley Allen’s Jeffrey M. Pollock countered, telling judges, “‘It stinks’ ain’t the law in New Jersey.” 2
On Tuesday, the company directed investors to fresh depression research data set to drop at the American College of Neuropsychopharmacology meeting in Nassau, Bahamas. J&J plans to unveil Phase 3 analyses of CAPLYTA (lumateperone) as an adjunct treatment for major depressive disorder, along with post-hoc reviews of SPRAVATO (esketamine) in treatment-resistant depression. They’ll also share metabolic data related to their investigational drug seltorexant. Bill Martin, J&J’s global neuroscience chief, emphasized their aim is “remission from disease.” 3
The legal picture remains messy. The Delaware decision upheld a hefty damages award but sent the total back for recalculation. Meanwhile, the talc docket still looms, its fate hinging on court rulings and jury verdicts.
Timing poses another risk: conference abstracts and retrospective analyses often don’t shift prescribing habits or forecasts right away. Investors might hold back until clearer endpoints, labels, or reimbursement details emerge.
Coming on Jan. 21, management will reveal results and answer questions about the 2026 outlook, cash usage, and litigation risks — including its take on the Auris damages reset and the speed of talc cases.
