Traders Buy Large Volume of Kenvue Call Options (NYSE:KVUE)

Kenvue Inc. (NYSE:KVUE) was the recipient of unusually large options trading on Friday. Stock investors purchased 12,993 call options on the company. This represents an increase of approximately 144% compared to the average volume of 5,327 call options.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts recently issued reports on the stock. UBS Group decreased their price objective on shares of Kenvue from $19.00 to $18.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, April 7th. Citigroup cut their target price on shares of Kenvue from $20.00 to $19.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, April 15th. Zacks Research lowered shares of Kenvue from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday. Barclays lowered their price objective on shares of Kenvue from $19.00 to $18.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, April 14th. Finally, Weiss Ratings raised Kenvue from a “hold (c-)” rating to a “hold (c)” rating in a research note on Monday, June 15th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and thirteen have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $19.33.

Insider Activity

In other news, General Counsel Matthew Orlando sold 38,491 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $17.66, for a total value of $679,751.06. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Insiders own 1.59% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the company. Physician Wealth Advisors Inc. boosted its position in Kenvue by 67.5% during the fourth quarter. Physician Wealth Advisors Inc. now owns 1,533 shares of the company’s stock worth $26,000 after purchasing an additional 618 shares during the period. Elyxium Wealth LLC bought a new position in shares of Kenvue in the fourth quarter valued at about $26,000. MV Capital Management Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Kenvue during the 4th quarter worth about $28,000. CoreCap Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Kenvue by 64.9% during the 2nd quarter. CoreCap Advisors LLC now owns 1,502 shares of the company’s stock worth $29,000 after buying an additional 591 shares during the period. Finally, Reflection Asset Management bought a new stake in shares of Kenvue during the 4th quarter worth about $32,000. 97.64% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Kenvue Stock Up 2.0%

Shares of Kenvue stock traded up $0.38 on Friday, hitting $19.56. The company had a trading volume of 3,841,114 shares, compared to its average volume of 29,884,768. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $18.02 and a 200-day moving average of $17.78. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.67, a current ratio of 0.98 and a quick ratio of 0.70. Kenvue has a twelve month low of $14.02 and a twelve month high of $22.87. The firm has a market capitalization of $37.56 billion, a P/E ratio of 23.02, a P/E/G ratio of 1.46 and a beta of 0.47.

Kenvue (NYSE:KVUE) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 7th. The company reported $0.32 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.27 by $0.05. The business had revenue of $3.91 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.84 billion. Kenvue had a net margin of 10.61% and a return on equity of 20.81%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 4.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the business posted $0.24 earnings per share. Research analysts predict that Kenvue will post 1.16 earnings per share for the current year.

Kenvue Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, May 27th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, May 13th were given a dividend of $0.2075 per share. This represents a $0.83 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.2%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, May 13th. Kenvue’s dividend payout ratio is currently 97.65%.

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.