By Abigail Summerville
NEW YORK (Reuters) -Kenvue is exploring the sale of some of its skin health and beauty brands, four people familiar with the matter said on Thursday, as the consumer health firm prunes an underperforming business segment to focus on core products.
The company, which was spun out of Johnson & Johnson in 2023, is zeroing in on smaller brands in the unit to sell such as Clean & Clear, Maui Moisture, Neostrata, its German baby care brand Bebe, and Japanese brand Dr.Ci:Labo, the sources said.
It plans to hold onto the bigger names in the unit, such as Neutrogena and Aveeno, the sources said. There are about a dozen brands in the skin health and beauty unit, and sources cautioned that the divestiture package could change and no deal was guaranteed.
Investment bankers at Goldman Sachs are working with Kenvue on the divestment process, they added.
Kenvue and Goldman declined to comment.
The around half-dozen brands earmarked for sale would generate more than $500 million of revenue together, two of the sources said, a small portion of Kenvue’s overall revenue, which was $15.5 billion in 2024.
The skin health and beauty unit has been a drag on Kenvue’s earnings, but the company has dedicated more money to marketing, especially on Neutrogena ad campaigns. The unit’s organic sales declined 4.8% year-over-year in Kenvue’s latest quarter that ended March 30.
Kenvue, which also makes Tylenol and Band-Aids, has faced activist pressure over the last year from Starboard Value, Toms Capital Management and Third Point. It settled with Starboard in March, when it added the investment firm’s founder to its board.
Some of the activists have been pushing the company to consider selling itself or certain brands.
In May, the company brought on new Chief Financial Officer Amit Banati from Kellanova, Kellogg’s spun-out snacking unit.
(Reporting by Abigail Summerville in New York; Editing by David French and Marguerita Choy)
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