Mizuho Securities USA LLC Sells 28,198 Shares of Kenvue Inc. (NYSE:KVUE)

Key Points

• Mizuho Securities USA LLC has reduced its position in Kenvue Inc. by 15.5%, now holding 153,514 shares valued at $3.68 million following the sale of 28,198 shares in Q1.
• Kenvue has reported a quarterly dividend increase to $0.2075 per share, representing an annual yield of 3.9%, despite a net margin decrease compared to the previous year.
• Recent research from several analysts resulted in a decrease of target prices for Kenvue shares, with an average price target of $24.38 and a consensus rating of "Hold."

Mizuho Securities USA LLC cut its position in Kenvue Inc. (NYSE:KVUE - Free Report) by 15.5% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 153,514 shares of the company's stock after selling 28,198 shares during the quarter. Mizuho Securities USA LLC's holdings in Kenvue were worth $3,681,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Pittenger & Anderson Inc. acquired a new stake in Kenvue in the first quarter valued at approximately $30,000. TruNorth Capital Management LLC bought a new stake in Kenvue during the 1st quarter worth approximately $36,000. Bank Julius Baer & Co. Ltd Zurich increased its position in Kenvue by 120.6% in the 1st quarter. Bank Julius Baer & Co. Ltd Zurich now owns 1,699 shares of the company's stock valued at $41,000 after acquiring an additional 929 shares during the period. Clarity Asset Management Inc. acquired a new position in Kenvue in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $45,000. Finally, Continuum Advisory LLC increased its position in Kenvue by 2,071.1% in the 1st quarter. Continuum Advisory LLC now owns 1,954 shares of the company's stock valued at $47,000 after acquiring an additional 1,864 shares during the period. 97.64% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Kenvue Stock Performance

NYSE:KVUE traded down $0.66 during trading hours on Thursday, reaching $21.06. The stock had a trading volume of 14,753,403 shares, compared to its average volume of 17,579,410. Kenvue Inc. has a 12-month low of $19.75 and a 12-month high of $25.17. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $21.56 and a 200 day simple moving average of $22.42. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.66, a quick ratio of 0.68 and a current ratio of 0.98. The stock has a market cap of $40.41 billion, a P/E ratio of 28.45, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.15 and a beta of 0.83.

Kenvue (NYSE:KVUE - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Thursday, August 7th. The company reported $0.29 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.28 by $0.01. Kenvue had a return on equity of 20.06% and a net margin of 9.37%. The company had revenue of $3.84 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.94 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $0.32 EPS. Kenvue's revenue for the quarter was down 4.0% on a year-over-year basis. On average, research analysts forecast that Kenvue Inc. will post 1.14 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Kenvue Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, August 27th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, August 13th will be issued a dividend of $0.2075 per share. This is a positive change from Kenvue's previous quarterly dividend of $0.21. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, August 13th. This represents a $0.83 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.9%. Kenvue's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 110.81%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts have issued reports on the stock. Citigroup decreased their price target on shares of Kenvue from $24.50 to $22.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, July 15th. Royal Bank Of Canada lowered their target price on shares of Kenvue from $24.00 to $22.00 and set a "sector perform" rating for the company in a research note on Friday, August 8th. Barclays reduced their price objective on shares of Kenvue from $23.00 to $22.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, July 15th. Bank of America dropped their price objective on shares of Kenvue from $27.00 to $25.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, July 15th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their target price on Kenvue from $27.00 to $26.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research report on Friday, July 25th. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $24.38.

Kenvue 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.