Viking Fund Management LLC Trims Stake in Kenvue Inc. $KVUE

Viking Fund Management LLC cut its position in shares of Kenvue Inc. (NYSE:KVUE) by 17.4% in the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 500,000 shares of the company’s stock after selling 105,000 shares during the period. Viking Fund Management LLC’s holdings in Kenvue were worth $8,625,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in KVUE. Cornerstone Planning Group LLC grew its position in shares of Kenvue by 705.2% during the 3rd quarter. Cornerstone Planning Group LLC now owns 1,554 shares of the company’s stock worth $25,000 after buying an additional 1,361 shares in the last quarter. NBT Bank N A NY raised its holdings in shares of Kenvue by 180.3% in the third quarter. NBT Bank N A NY now owns 1,564 shares of the company’s stock valued at $25,000 after acquiring an additional 1,006 shares in the last quarter. Salomon & Ludwin LLC purchased a new stake in Kenvue in the third quarter worth about $25,000. Golden State Wealth Management LLC grew its holdings in Kenvue by 150.1% during the 3rd quarter. Golden State Wealth Management LLC now owns 1,983 shares of the company’s stock worth $32,000 after acquiring an additional 1,190 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Trust Co. of Vermont grew its holdings in Kenvue by 50.9% during the 3rd quarter. Trust Co. of Vermont now owns 2,385 shares of the company’s stock worth $39,000 after acquiring an additional 804 shares in the last quarter. 97.64% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Kenvue Stock Performance

KVUE stock opened at $17.53 on Wednesday. Kenvue Inc. has a one year low of $14.02 and a one year high of $25.17. The firm has a market cap of $33.59 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.76, a PEG ratio of 4.00 and a beta of 0.51. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.66, a quick ratio of 0.68 and a current ratio of 0.96. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $17.99 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $17.14.

Kenvue (NYSE:KVUE) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 17th. The company reported $0.27 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.22 by $0.05. Kenvue had a net margin of 9.72% and a return on equity of 19.72%. The firm had revenue of $3.78 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.68 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $0.26 EPS. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 3.2% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities analysts forecast that Kenvue Inc. will post 1.14 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Kenvue Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, February 25th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, February 11th were given a dividend of $0.2075 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, February 11th. This represents a $0.83 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.7%. Kenvue’s dividend payout ratio is presently 107.79%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

KVUE has been the subject of several recent research reports. Argus upgraded shares of Kenvue to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, March 6th. Weiss Ratings reissued a “hold (c-)” rating on shares of Kenvue in a report on Friday, January 9th. Canaccord Genuity Group boosted their price objective on shares of Kenvue from $17.00 to $18.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 18th. UBS Group upped their target price on Kenvue from $17.00 to $19.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 18th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group cut Kenvue from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and dropped their target price for the company from $23.00 to $18.00 in a research report on Friday, January 30th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and thirteen have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $19.58.

About Kenvue

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.