Kenvue Inc. (KVUE)

Price$17.69Cached quoteAs of 2026-09-24 18:50 UTC

AI: Fair-priced

Price checkAt $19.13, Kenvue looks fairly priced because the pending deal offers only modest upside.

Kenvue closed at $19.13 on August 19, 2026, the latest completed session before the requested timestamp. Kimberly-Clark will pay $3.50 cash plus 0.14625 Kimberly-Clark shares for each Kenvue share. With Kimberly-Clark recently around $108-$109, that package is worth roughly $19.30-$19.45, only about 1%-2% above Kenvue's price. That small gap reasonably compensates investors for closing risk and Kimberly-Clark share-price movements, leaving insufficient evidence for either a clear bargain or clear overvaluation.

Big pictureCash generation is recovering, but several years of nearly flat sales limit the valuation case.

Revenue was $15.12 billion in 2025 versus $15.46 billion in 2024 and $15.44 billion in 2023, showing limited long-term growth. Momentum has improved: first-half 2026 sales rose to $7.86 billion from $7.58 billion, and second-quarter organic growth was 1.6%. Trailing free cash flow, meaning cash left after running and investing in the business, is about $1.91 billion, versus roughly $1.72 billion in 2025. Consumer-health demand is relatively steady, although allergy, cough-and-cold and beauty categories retain seasonal and consumer-spending sensitivity.

Business strengthStrong brands support steady cash flow, while debt and a heavy dividend commitment reduce flexibility.

At June 2026, Kenvue held $1.11 billion of cash against $8.48 billion of debt, leaving $7.37 billion of net debt, about 2.3 times trailing operating earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization. Current assets of $5.90 billion only slightly exceeded $5.87 billion of current liabilities. The annualized $0.84 dividend costs about $1.61 billion, roughly 84% of trailing free cash flow. Buybacks totaled $197 million in 2025 but stopped in first-half 2026; shares outstanding have risen only about 0.2% since year-end.

What could change the storyThe merger outcome now matters more than modest improvements in Kenvue's standalone business.

The strongest bull case is completion of the Kimberly-Clark transaction in the fourth quarter while Kimberly-Clark shares hold or rise, lifting the value of the fixed 0.14625-share component. The bear case is a delay, regulatory complication or deal failure, because Kenvue then returns to a standalone valuation near 22 times trailing earnings despite slow historical sales growth and substantial debt. Australia and New Zealand are reviewing feminine-hygiene overlaps. Separately, sustained organic growth above roughly 2% with recovering margins would strengthen standalone value materially.

AI: News

Second-quarter resultsSales returned to broader growth, but inflation and tariffs kept margins below last year's level.

On August 6, 2026, Kenvue reported second-quarter sales of $3.96 billion, up 3.0%, with organic sales up 1.6%. Diluted earnings rose to $0.24 per share and adjusted earnings reached $0.31, one cent below the analyst consensus reported by Reuters. Adjusted gross margin fell to 60.2% from 60.9% as inflation, tariffs and currency costs outweighed some productivity savings. Kenvue shares closed 2.49% lower that day, although broader markets also declined, so the precise attribution is uncertain.

Merger reviews continueThe Kimberly-Clark deal remains targeted for late 2026, but some foreign approvals are still pending.

Kenvue said on August 6 that it still expects the Kimberly-Clark combination to close in the fourth quarter of 2026. U.S. antitrust waiting requirements had expired in February and India approved the transaction on May 12. However, Australia's competition regulator was still reviewing the deal in late July, while New Zealand's case remained open. Kimberly-Clark offered to divest Kenvue's feminine-hygiene businesses in Australia and New Zealand, showing a concrete path toward approval but also explaining why Kenvue trades below the merger consideration.

Dividend raised slightlyKenvue increased its dividend, reinforcing income support while leaving little spare cash for other uses.

On July 29, 2026, Kenvue raised its quarterly dividend by 1.2% to $0.21 per share, payable August 26 to holders of record on August 12. At the $19.13 share price, the annualized dividend yield is about 4.4%. The increase supports the stock's income appeal, but four payments at that rate would consume about $1.61 billion annually, compared with approximately $1.91 billion of trailing free cash flow. The change therefore signals cash durability more than aggressive balance-sheet flexibility.

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Revenue

2021

2022

2023

2024

2025

Net income

2021

2022

2023

2024

2025

Free cash flow

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Total cash / debt

CashTotal debt

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2025

Financial statements

	2025	2024	2023	2022	2021
Revenue	$15.12B	$15.46B	$15.44B	$14.95B	$15.05B
Gross profit	$8.79B	$8.96B	$8.64B	$8.29B	$8.42B
Gross margin	58.13%	57.97%	55.96%	55.42%	55.93%
Research & development	$382.0M	$408.0M	$399.0M	$375.0M	$355.0M
Operating expenses	$6.38B	$7.12B	$6.13B	$5.61B	$5.50B
Operating income	$2.41B	$1.84B	$2.51B	$2.67B	$2.92B
Operating margin	15.96%	11.91%	16.27%	17.89%	19.40%
EBITDA	$2.97B	$2.46B	$3.14B	$3.32B	$3.65B
EBITDA margin	19.64%	15.94%	20.33%	22.20%	24.25%
Net income	$1.47B	$1.03B	$1.66B	$2.06B	$2.08B
Net profit margin	9.72%	6.66%	10.77%	13.81%	13.80%
Basic EPSper basic share	$0.77	$0.54	$0.90	$1.20	$1.21
Diluted EPSper diluted share	$0.76	$0.54	$0.90	$1.20	$1.21

Review official source filings ↗

Owners

Reported shareholders

Reference date Jun 30, 2026

≈8.18%of listed shares

FMR LLC157.05M shares · Jun 30, 2026

View holders

Top 20 reported holders of KVUE
Holder	% owned
FMR LLC	≈8.18%157.05M shares
BlackRock, Inc.	≈7.85%150.83M shares
VANGUARD CAPITAL MANAGEMENT LLC	≈6.53%125.31M shares
STATE STREET CORP	≈6.33%121.62M shares
VANGUARD PORTFOLIO MANAGEMENT LLC	≈4.86%93.3M shares
GEODE CAPITAL MANAGEMENT, LLC	≈2.71%52.02M shares
Pentwater Capital Management LP	≈2.66%51.13M shares
Independent Franchise Partners LLP	≈2.63%50.43M shares
NORGES BANK	≈2.40%46.16M shares
MASSACHUSETTS FINANCIAL SERVICES CO /MA/	≈2.33%44.72M shares
MILLENNIUM MANAGEMENT LLC	≈1.92%36.94M shares
HBK INVESTMENTS L P	≈1.46%28M shares
Smith Jeffrey C	≈1.42%27.31M shares
Starboard Value LP	≈1.42%27.31M shares
JPMORGAN CHASE & CO	≈1.37%26.25M shares
MORGAN STANLEY	≈1.29%24.8M shares
GOLDMAN SACHS GROUP INC	≈1.19%22.8M shares
SG Americas Securities, LLC	≈1.18%22.72M shares
DIMENSIONAL FUND ADVISORS LP	≈1.18%22.59M shares
Balyasny Asset Management L.P.	≈1.03%19.86M shares

Percentages use 1.92B shares of this listed class outstanding on Jun 28, 2026. ≈ compares the latest reported holding with a share total from a different date; it is not a confirmed current stake.

Gray completes the 100% scale. Reported positions may overlap; holders have different reporting dates.

Source: SEC Form 13F ↗Updated Sep 29, 2026 · Quarterly data

Insider buys & sells

Jul 1, 2024–Jun 30, 2026

Buys2$110.97M disclosed value

Sells (SEC code S)3$1.14M disclosed value

Transaction	Insider	Type	Shares	Price	Value	Owned after
Jun 10, 2026Form 4	Howlett HeatherCFO & CAO	SellCommon Stock	3.7K	$18.11	$67.0K	29.3K
May 8, 2026Form 4	Orlando MatthewGeneral Counsel	SellCommon Stock	38.5K	$17.66	$679.8K	0
Dec 12, 2025Form 4	Smith Jeffrey CDirector	BuyCommon Stock, $0.01 par value · indirect	3.20M	$17.37	$55.58M	27.31M
Dec 11, 2025Form 4	Smith Jeffrey CDirector	BuyCommon Stock, $0.01 par value · indirect	3.18M	$17.43	$55.39M	24.11M
Mar 13, 2025Form 4	Lawson CarltonGroup President EMEA & LA	SellCommon Stock	17.1K	$23.03	$393.8K	56.3K

Review ownership filings at SEC.gov ↗

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