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In the year-ago quarter, results were also boosted by an after-tax gain of $368 million from the breakup fee J&J received after medical device maker Guidant backed out of an acquisition agreement and instead was purchased by Boston Scientific.

Analysts surveyed by Thomson Financial had expected earnings a share of $1.05 and sales of $14.44 billion.

Sales totaled $15.04 billion, up nearly 16%.

Operational sales growth, which excludes the impact of new products and currency exchange rates, was 6.3%.

Revenue from the medical devices and diagnostics division edged up 6.2% to $5.32 billion, hurt by a 14% slide at Cordis, J&J's cardiovascular device business.

Sales of Cordis' drug-coated stents, tiny metal scaffolds that prop open arteries and slowly release medicine, were problematic, Chief Financial Officer Dominic Caruso told analysts during a conference call.

He was referring to new concerns about the safety and effectiveness of J&J's Cypher and other drug-coated stents.

Sales of prescription drugs, J&J's biggest business segment, rose 10.6% to $6.22 billion, led by strong sales of epilepsy treatment Topamax, anti-infective drug Levaquin and anti-psychotic drugs including Risp...

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