Kenvue (NYSE:KVUE) Lowered to “Hold” Rating by Wall Street Zen

Wall Street Zen lowered shares of Kenvue (NYSE:KVUE) from a buy rating to a hold rating in a research note released on Saturday morning.

Several other brokerages also recently issued reports on KVUE. Barclays raised their price target on Kenvue from $18.00 to $19.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Tuesday, July 21st. Weiss Ratings upgraded Kenvue from a “hold (c-)” rating to a “hold (c)” rating in a research note on Monday, June 15th. Citigroup cut their target price on Kenvue from $20.00 to $19.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, April 15th. Zacks Research downgraded shares of Kenvue from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, July 7th. Finally, UBS Group upped their price target on shares of Kenvue from $18.00 to $20.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, July 16th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and twelve have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Kenvue presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $19.36.

Kenvue Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:KVUE opened at $19.22 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.70, a current ratio of 0.98 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.67. Kenvue has a fifty-two week low of $14.02 and a fifty-two week high of $21.95. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $18.77 and a 200 day simple moving average of $18.09. The company has a market cap of $36.91 billion, a PE ratio of 22.09, a P/E/G ratio of 1.46 and a beta of 0.47.

Kenvue (NYSE:KVUE) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, August 6th. The company reported $0.31 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.32 by ($0.01). The company had revenue of $3.96 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.97 billion. Kenvue had a net margin of 10.76% and a return on equity of 21.17%. The business’s revenue was up 3.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $0.29 earnings per share. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Kenvue will post 1.15 EPS for the current year.

Kenvue Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, August 26th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, August 12th will be paid a dividend of $0.21 per share. This represents a $0.84 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.4%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, August 12th. This is an increase from Kenvue’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.21. Kenvue’s dividend payout ratio is 95.40%.

Institutional Trading of Kenvue

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of KVUE. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. grew its stake in shares of Kenvue by 25.8% in the 4th quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. now owns 410,874 shares of the company’s stock worth $7,088,000 after purchasing an additional 84,219 shares during the last quarter. Calamos Advisors LLC lifted its stake in Kenvue by 24.1% during the first quarter. Calamos Advisors LLC now owns 3,351,000 shares of the company’s stock valued at $57,771,000 after purchasing an additional 651,000 shares during the last quarter. Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd. lifted its stake in Kenvue by 21.5% during the fourth quarter. Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 3,491,548 shares of the company’s stock valued at $60,229,000 after purchasing an additional 618,720 shares during the last quarter. State of Wyoming boosted its holdings in Kenvue by 233.5% during the fourth quarter. State of Wyoming now owns 97,992 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,690,000 after buying an additional 68,609 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Cullen Frost Bankers Inc. boosted its holdings in Kenvue by 19.9% during the fourth quarter. Cullen Frost Bankers Inc. now owns 431,394 shares of the company’s stock worth $7,442,000 after buying an additional 71,591 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 97.64% of the company’s stock.

Kenvue News Summary

Here are the key news stories impacting Kenvue this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Second-quarter net sales rose 3.0% year over year to $3.96 billion, supported by higher prices and volumes. Organic sales increased 1.6%, with growth across Self Care, Skin Health and Beauty, and Essential Health. Kenvue Posts Higher Profit, Sales as Turnaround Continues
• Positive Sentiment: Net income increased to $456 million from $420 million a year earlier, while adjusted diluted EPS reached $0.31 versus $0.29 in the prior-year quarter. Six-month operating cash flow was $1.2 billion and free cash flow was $1.0 billion. Kenvue Q2 net sales rise 3% as diluted EPS hits 24 cents
• Neutral Sentiment: The Kimberly-Clark transaction remains expected to close in the fourth quarter of 2026, subject to regulatory approvals and customary conditions. Kenvue is withholding forward guidance because of the pending deal, limiting visibility for investors. How Reddit and Wall Street See Kenvue as Buyout Nears
• Negative Sentiment: Adjusted EPS of $0.31 fell short of the $0.32 consensus estimate, while revenue of $3.96 billion was slightly below the $3.97 billion forecast. The miss was unusual for Kenvue and contributed to the recent decline in the stock. Kenvue misses quarterly estimates as inflation, tariffs squeeze margins
• Negative Sentiment: Margins narrowed as inflation, tariffs and currency-related costs offset part of the benefit from pricing and volume gains, raising concerns about near-term profitability and the company’s turnaround execution. KVUE Q2 Earnings Miss Estimates as Margins Narrows Sales Rise

Kenvue Company Profile

Kenvue is a consumer health company that was established as a standalone, publicly traded business after separating from Johnson & Johnson. Listed on the New York Stock Exchange under the symbol KVUE, Kenvue focuses on the development, manufacture, marketing and distribution of consumer health and personal care products across a range of categories including skin and beauty care, baby care, oral care, wound care and over‑the‑counter medicines.

The company owns and markets a portfolio of widely recognized consumer brands, including names familiar to global shoppers across retail and pharmacy channels.