Kenvue Sees Unusually Large Options Volume (NYSE:KVUE)

Kenvue Inc. (NYSE:KVUE) was the target of some unusual options trading on Tuesday. Investors purchased 20,742 call options on the company. This is an increase of approximately 35% compared to the average volume of 15,332 call options.

Kenvue Price Performance

Shares of KVUE traded up $2.35 during midday trading on Tuesday, reaching $20.54. The stock had a trading volume of 25,699,303 shares, compared to its average volume of 19,120,846. The company’s 50-day moving average is $18.49 and its 200 day moving average is $19.43. Kenvue has a 12-month low of $17.67 and a 12-month high of $24.10. The company has a current ratio of 0.99, a quick ratio of 0.68 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.66. The company has a market capitalization of $39.33 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 26.54, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.07 and a beta of 1.38.

Kenvue (NYSE:KVUE) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, May 7th. The company reported $0.28 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.25 by $0.03. The company had revenue of $2.89 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.79 billion. Kenvue had a return on equity of 21.06% and a net margin of 9.63%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was down 24.9% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities analysts predict that Kenvue will post 1.13 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Kenvue Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, August 28th. Investors of record on Wednesday, August 14th will be issued a dividend of $0.205 per share. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, August 14th. This is a boost from Kenvue’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.20. This represents a $0.82 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.99%. Kenvue’s dividend payout ratio is currently 105.13%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its position in Kenvue by 12.0% during the 1st quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 166,789,085 shares of the company’s stock valued at $3,579,294,000 after purchasing an additional 17,908,497 shares during the last quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD raised its position in shares of Kenvue by 23.1% in the 1st quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 134,565,333 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,887,773,000 after acquiring an additional 25,238,112 shares in the last quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP raised its position in shares of Kenvue by 6.7% in the 4th quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 76,501,956 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,647,087,000 after acquiring an additional 4,815,126 shares in the last quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised its position in shares of Kenvue by 11.1% in the 1st quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 68,319,998 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,466,147,000 after acquiring an additional 6,825,611 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA grew its stake in shares of Kenvue by 9.1% in the 4th quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 66,665,454 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,435,307,000 after buying an additional 5,574,265 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 97.64% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts have weighed in on KVUE shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their price target on Kenvue from $23.00 to $22.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, July 22nd. Citigroup lowered their target price on Kenvue from $21.00 to $20.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, July 10th. HSBC increased their price target on Kenvue from $20.00 to $21.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 8th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft lowered their target price on Kenvue from $24.00 to $23.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, July 25th. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein assumed coverage on Kenvue in a report on Thursday, April 11th. They issued an “underperform” rating and a $18.00 target price for the company. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have assigned a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $22.45.

Kenvue Company Profile

Kenvue Inc operates as a consumer health company worldwide. The company operates through three segments: Self Care, Skin Health and Beauty, and Essential Health. The Self Care segment offers cough, cold and allergy, pain care, digestive health, smoking cessation, eye care, and other products under the Tylenol, Motrin, Benadryl, Nicorette, Zarbee's, ORSLTM, Rhinocort, Calpol, and Zyrtec brands.