Johnson & Johnson spin-off Kenvue’s shareholders have unanimously backed a takeover bid from Kimberly-Clark, the US consumer giant that owns brands including Huggies and Kleenex.
Creating a $32bn (£23.2bn) revenue personal and health care titan, the $48.7bn merger was overwhelmingly approved by both companies’ shareholders, with 96% of Kimberly-Clark and 99% of Kenvue holders backing the deal, largely payable in equity.
The strong shareholder approval marks a reverse from the adverse reaction Kimberly-Clark saw from shareholders when it announced the deal in November 2025. The Texas-headquartered multinational’s share price crashed 15.9% in just a few days, cutting into the value of the deal, and has since slid further into a five-year low.
Kenvue suffered a turbulent year in 2025: ousting CEO Thibaut Mongon in July following a strategic review, the owner of paracetamol brand Tylenol also came under fire from Donald Trump, who repeated fabricated claims linking the painkiller to autism.
And Kenvue has recently been taken to court in the UK, facing allegations that its talc products caused cancer.
However, the merger could result in massive synergies, estimated at $1.9bn in savings – and according to Kimberly-Clark chairman and CEO Mike Hsu was a “generational value-creation opportunity”.
The deal is now expected to close in the second half of 2026, pending regulatory approvals and other closing conditions.
“We are grateful to Kimberly-Clark shareholders who voted resoundingly in support of our combination with Kenvue,” said Hsu.
“This is an exciting milestone and advances our efforts to create a pre-eminent global health and wellness leader that will raise the standard of care for billions of people around the world and generate significant value for shareholders.
“Kimberly-Clark and Kenvue leaders are collaborating well on our critical integration planning efforts, which further underscores our excitement and confidence in the opportunity we have in front of us.”
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