US drugmaker Johnson & Johnson (J&J), the country’s largest healthcare company, in particular in the consumer segment, has launched a $10 billion debt-financed share buyback program. The scheme announced simultaneously with third-quarter earnings, will be financed by debt, and is open-ended in terms of duration. The New Jersey-based company had close to 2.8 billion shares of common stock outstanding as of Sept.27.

CEO Alex Gorsky said the board of directors and management team believes the company's shares are an attractive investment opportunity, adding that “repurchasing stock is an important part of our capital allocation strategy.”

For the third quarter, J&J reported earnings of $1.49 per share on revenue of $17.1 billion for slightly beating analysts’ expectations.

"New and core products drove solid underlying growth," Gorsky said, commenting on the results. "Consistent with the plans we've laid out for the year, we're focusing our portfolio and are advancing our innovation agenda to expand our leadership position in key categories while seeking new opportunities for growth.”