Kenvue (NYSE: KVUE) outlines Kimberly-Clark merger proxy and risks

Rhea-AI Filing Summary

Kenvue has filed website materials related to its proposed transaction with Kimberly-Clark, highlighting that a joint proxy statement/prospectus on Form S-4 has been declared effective by the SEC and mailed to stockholders for approval of transaction-related proposals. The communication stresses that it is not an offer to sell or exchange securities and directs investors to read the full registration statement and definitive joint proxy statement/prospectus available from the SEC and company websites. It also explains that both companies’ directors and officers may be participants in proxy solicitations and points to prior SEC filings for details on their holdings.

The text contains an extensive cautionary statement about forward-looking statements regarding expected benefits, synergies, financing, leverage, cash flow, tax rate, and timing of closing, noting that many risks—from regulatory approvals and integration challenges to macroeconomic, supply chain, legal, and competitive pressures—could cause actual results to differ materially. Kenvue and Kimberly-Clark also flag that combined-company projections are illustrative only, are not prepared under SEC pro forma rules, and that non-GAAP metrics such as EBITDA, adjusted operating profit and adjusted constant currency EPS growth have limitations and should not be viewed as substitutes for GAAP results.

Insights

M&A and securities disclosure analyst

Large consumer merger moves through proxy stage with extensive risk and non-GAAP cautions.

The content describes a proposed transaction between Kimberly-Clark and Kenvue and notes that a Form S-4 registration statement with a joint proxy statement/prospectus has been declared effective by the SEC. Both companies have begun mailing the definitive joint proxy statement/prospectus to stockholders to seek approval of transaction-related proposals, underscoring that this is a major corporate action routed through standard U.S. proxy and registration mechanics.

The communication focuses on legal and risk disclosures rather than deal terms. It details numerous forward-looking statements about anticipated synergies, financing, leverage, cash flows, growth initiatives, and tax effects, while emphasizing that actual results could differ materially due to regulatory, integration, market, operational, and legal risks. It also stresses that combined financial projections are illustrative, not prepared under Regulation S-X pro forma rules, and that non-GAAP measures like EBITDA, adjusted operating profit, and adjusted constant currency EPS growth have analytical limitations.

For investors, the key takeaway is that the transaction is progressing procedurally, but outcomes around closing, synergy realization, and capital structure remain exposed to many contingencies. The primary authoritative sources for evaluating the deal remain the effective Form S-4, the definitive joint proxy statement/prospectus, and each company’s ongoing SEC reports, which collectively outline the detailed terms, risk factors, and potential impacts.

Filed by Kenvue Inc.

Pursuant to Rule 425 of the Securities Act of 1933

and deemed filed pursuant to Rule 14a-12 of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934

Subject Company: Kenvue Inc.

Commission File No.: 001-41697

The following screenshots of a website hosted at https://www.leadinghealthandwellness.com/ are being filed in connection with the proposed transaction between Kimberly-Clark Corporation and Kenvue Inc.:

Important Information for Investors and Stockholders

This communication does not constitute an offer to sell or the solicitation of an offer to buy or exchange any securities or a solicitation of any vote or approval in any jurisdiction. It does not constitute a prospectus or prospectus equivalent document. No offering of securities shall be made except by means of a prospectus meeting the requirements of Section 10 of the U.S. Securities Act of 1933, as amended (the “Securities Act”).

This communication may be deemed to be solicitation material in respect of the proposed transaction between Kimberly-Clark Corporation (“K-C”) and Kenvue Inc. (“Kenvue”). In connection therewith, on 12/4/2025, K-C and Kenvue filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission (the “SEC”) a K-C registration statement on Form S-4, as amended on 12/12/2025 (the “Form S-4”), in connection with the proposed issuance of shares of K-C’s common stock pursuant to the proposed transaction, which contains a joint proxy statement of K-C and Kenvue that also constitutes a prospectus of K-C. The registration statement was declared effective by the SEC on 12/16/2025 and K-C and Kenvue filed a prospectus and definitive proxy statement, respectively, and commenced mailing the definitive joint proxy statement/prospectus to their respective stockholders, on 12/16/2025, seeking their approval of their respective transaction-related proposals. INVESTORS AND STOCKHOLDERS OF K-C AND KENVUE ARE URGED TO READ CAREFULLY THE REGISTRATION STATEMENT AND THE DEFINITIVE JOINT PROXY STATEMENT/PROSPECTUS AS WELL AS ANY AMENDMENTS OR SUPPLEMENTS AND OTHER DOCUMENTS IN THEIR ENTIRETY FILED OR THAT WILL BE FILED WITH THE SEC BECAUSE THEY CONTAIN OR WILL CONTAIN IMPORTANT INFORMATION ABOUT THE PROPOSED TRANSACTION, THE PARTIES TO THE PROPOSED TRANSACTION AND ANY SOLICITATION. This communication is not a substitute for the registration statement, the definitive joint proxy statement/prospectus or any other document that K-C or Kenvue may file with the SEC and send to its stockholders in connection with the proposed transaction. Investors and stockholders may obtain free copies of the registration statement and the definitive joint proxy statement/prospectus and other documents filed with the SEC by K-C or Kenvue through the website maintained by the SEC at http://www.sec.gov. Copies of the documents filed with the SEC by K-C are available free of charge on K-C’s website at kimberly-clark.com under the tab “Investors” and under the heading “Financial” and subheading “SEC Filings.” Copies of the documents filed with the SEC by Kenvue are available free of charge on Kenvue’s website at kenvue.com under the tab “Investors” and under the heading “Financials & reports” and subheading “SEC filings.”

Certain Information Regarding Participants

K-C, Kenvue, and their respective directors and executive officers and certain other members of management and employees may be considered participants in the solicitation of proxies from the stockholders of K-C and Kenvue in connection with the proposed transaction. Information about the directors and executive officers of K-C is set forth in its Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended 12/31/2024, which was filed with the SEC on 2/13/2025, its proxy statement for its 2025 annual meeting, which was filed with the SEC on 3/10/2025, and its Current Reports on Form 8-K, which were filed with the SEC on 5/6/2025 and 11/7/2025. Information about the directors and executive officers of Kenvue is set forth in its Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended 12/29/2024, which was filed with the SEC on 2/24/2025, its proxy statement for its 2025 annual meeting, which was filed with the SEC on 4/9/2025, and its Current Reports on Form 8-K, which were filed with the SEC on 5/8/2025, 6/24/2025, 7/14/2025 and 11/3/2025. To the extent holdings of K-C’s or Kenvue’s securities by its directors or executive officers have changed since the amounts set forth in such filings, such changes have been or will be reflected on Initial Statements of Beneficial Ownership on Form 3 or Statements of Beneficial Ownership on Form 4 filed with the SEC, including the Initial Statements of Beneficial Ownership on Form 3, Statements of Change in Ownership on Form 4 or Annual Statements of Beneficial Ownership on Form 5 filed with the SEC on: 5/2/2025, 5/2/2025, 5/2/2025, 5/2/2025, 5/2/2025, 5/2/2025, 5/2/2025, 5/2/2025, 5/2/2025, 5/27/2025, 5/27/2025, 5/27/2025, 5/27/2025, 5/27/2025, 5/27/2025, 5/27/2025, 5/27/2025, 6/2/2025, 8/1/2025, 8/1/2025, 8/4/2025, 10/3/2025, 10/7/2025, 11/3/2025, 11/3/2025, 11/3/2025, 12/3/2025, 12/3/2025, 12/3/2025, 12/3/2025, 12/3/2025, 12/15/2025, 12/17/2025, 12/17/2025, 12/17/2025, 12/17/2025, 12/17/2025, 12/23/2025, 1/5/2026, 1/5/2026, 1/5/2026, 1/5/2026, 1/5/2026, 1/5/2026, 1/5/2026, 1/5/2026, 1/5/2026, 1/5/2026, 1/5/2026, 1/5/2026, 1/6/2026, 1/6/2026 and 1/12/2026. Additional information about the directors and executive officers of K-C and Kenvue and other information regarding the potential participants in the proxy solicitations and a description of their direct and indirect interests, by security holdings or otherwise, which may, in some cases, be different than those of K-C’s stockholders or Kenvue’s stockholders generally, are contained in the definitive joint proxy statement/prospectus filed with the SEC and other relevant materials filed with or to be filed with the SEC regarding the proposed transaction when they become available. You may obtain these documents (when they become available) free of charge through the website maintained by the SEC at http://www.sec.gov and from K-C’s or Kenvue’s website as described above.

Cautionary Statement Regarding Forward-Looking Statements

Certain matters contained in this communication, including projections as to the anticipated benefits of the proposed transaction, the impact of the proposed transaction on K-C’s and Kenvue’s business and future financial and operating results and prospects, the amount and timing of synergies from the proposed transaction, the terms and scope of the expected financing in connection with the proposed transaction, the aggregate amount of indebtedness of the combined company following the closing of the proposed transaction, expectations regarding cash flow generation and the post-closing capital structure, growth initiatives, innovations, marketing and other spending, net sales, anticipated currency rates and exchange risks, effective tax rate and other contingencies in connection with the proposed transaction, and the closing date for the proposed transaction, constitute “forward-looking statements” within the meaning of Section 27A of the Securities Act and Section 21E of the U.S. Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended, and are based upon the current expectations and beliefs of the management of K-C and Kenvue concerning future events impacting K-C and Kenvue and are qualified by the inherent risks and uncertainties surrounding future expectations generally. There can be no assurance that these future events will occur as anticipated or that our results will be as estimated. Actual results could differ materially from those currently anticipated due to a number of risks and uncertainties, many of which are beyond K-C’s and Kenvue’s control. Forward-looking statements speak only as of the date they were made, and we undertake no obligation to publicly update them. Some of these forward-looking statements can be identified by words like “anticipate,” “approximately,” “believe,” “continue,” “could,” “estimate,” “expect,” “forecast,” “intend,” “may,” “outlook,” “plan,” “potential,” “possible,” “predict,” “project,” “target,” “seek,” “should,” “will,” or “would,” the negative of these words, other terms of similar meaning or the use of future dates.

The assumptions used as a basis for the forward-looking statements include many estimates that depend on many factors outside of K-C’s or Kenvue’s control, including, but not limited to, risks and uncertainties around the occurrence of any event, change or other circumstance that could give rise to the termination of the merger agreement, including circumstances requiring a party to pay the other party a termination fee pursuant to the merger agreement, the risk that the conditions to the completion of the proposed transaction (including stockholder and regulatory approvals) are not satisfied in a timely manner or at all, the possibility that competing offers or transaction proposals may be made, the risks arising from the integration of the K-C and Kenvue businesses, the uncertainty of rating agency actions, the risk that the anticipated benefits and synergies of the proposed transaction may not be realized when expected or at all and that the proposed transaction may not be completed in a timely manner or at all, the risk of unexpected costs or expenses resulting from the proposed transaction, the risk of litigation related to the proposed transaction, including resulting expense or delay, the risks related to disruption to ongoing business operations and diversion of management’s time as a result of the proposed transaction, the risk that the proposed transaction may have an adverse effect on the ability of K-C and Kenvue to retain key personnel, customers and suppliers, the risk that the credit ratings of the combined company declines following the proposed transaction, the risk that the announcement or the consummation of the proposed transaction has a negative effect on the market price of the capital stock of K-C and Kenvue or on K-C’s and Kenvue’s operating results, the risk of product liability litigation or government or regulatory action, including related to product liability claims, the risk of product efficacy or safety concerns resulting in product recalls or regulatory action, risks relating to inflation and other economic factors, such as interest rate and currency exchange rate fluctuations, government trade or similar regulatory actions (including current and potential trade and tariff actions and other constraints on trade affecting the countries where K-C or Kenvue operate and the resulting negative impacts on our supply chain, commodity costs, and consumer spending), natural disasters, acts of war, terrorism, catastrophes, pandemics, epidemics, or other disease outbreaks, the prices and availability of K-C’s or Kenvue’s raw materials, manufacturing difficulties or delays or supply chain disruptions, disruptions in the capital and credit markets, counterparty defaults (including customers, suppliers and financial institutions with which K-C or Kenvue do business), impairment of goodwill and intangible assets and projections of operating results and other factors that may affect impairment testing, changes in customer preferences, severe weather conditions, regional instabilities and hostilities, potential competitive pressures on selling prices for K-C and Kenvue products, energy costs, general economic and political conditions globally and in the markets in which K-C and Kenvue do business (including the related responses of consumers, customers and suppliers on sanctions issued by the U.S., the European Union, Russia or other countries), the ability to maintain key customer relationships, competition, including technological advances, new products, and intellectual property attained by competitors, challenges inherent in new product research and development, uncertainty of commercial success for new and existing products and digital capabilities, challenges to intellectual property protections including counterfeiting, the ability of K-C and Kenvue to successfully execute business development strategy and other strategic plans, changes to applicable laws and regulations and other requirements imposed by stakeholders, as well as changes in behavior and spending patterns of consumers, could affect the realization of these estimates.

Additional information and factors concerning these risks, uncertainties and assumptions can be found in K-C’s and Kenvue’s respective filings with the SEC, including the risk factors discussed in K-C’s and Kenvue’s most recent Annual Reports on Form 10-K, as updated by their Quarterly Reports on Form 10-Q, the Form S-4 and future filings with the SEC. Forward-looking statements included herein are made only as of the date hereof and neither K-C nor Kenvue undertakes any obligation to update any forward-looking statements, or any other information in this communication, as a result of new information, future developments or otherwise, or to correct any inaccuracies or omissions in them which become apparent. All forward-looking statements in this communication are qualified in their entirety by this cautionary statement.

Important Note about Combined and Non-GAAP Financial Information

The projected financial information for the combined businesses of K-C and Kenvue is based on management’s estimates, assumptions and projections and has not been prepared in conformance with the applicable requirements of Regulation S-X relating to pro forma financial information, and the required pro forma adjustments have not been applied and are not reflected therein. This information is provided for illustrative purposes only and should not be considered in isolation from, or as a substitute for, the historical financial statements of K-C or Kenvue. Various factors could cause actual future results to differ materially from those currently estimated by management, including, but not limited to, the risks described above and in each of K-C’s and Kenvue’s respective filings with the SEC.

This communication also includes certain financial measures not calculated in accordance with U.S. generally accepted accounting principles (“GAAP”), such as EBITDA, adjusted operating profit and adjusted constant currency EPS growth. Non-GAAP financial measures have limitations as an analytical tool and are not meant to be considered in isolation from, or as a substitute for, the comparable GAAP measures. There are limitations to non-GAAP financial measures because they are not prepared in accordance with GAAP and may not be comparable to similarly titled measures of other companies due to potential differences in methods of calculation and items being excluded. K-C and Kenvue caution you not to place undue reliance on these non-GAAP financial measures.

FAQ

What is the proposed transaction between Kimberly-Clark and Kenvue (KVUE)?

The communication describes a proposed transaction between Kimberly-Clark Corporation and Kenvue Inc., for which a Form S-4 registration statement with a joint proxy statement/prospectus has been filed and declared effective by the SEC.

What documents about the Kimberly-Clark and Kenvue (KVUE) deal should investors read?

Investors are urged to read the registration statement on Form S-4 and the definitive joint proxy statement/prospectus, including any amendments or supplements, because they contain important information about the proposed transaction and the parties involved.

How can Kenvue (KVUE) and Kimberly-Clark investors access the joint proxy statement and related SEC filings?

Free copies are available on the SEC’s website at sec.gov. Kimberly-Clark’s filings can be found at kimberly-clark.com under Investors → Financial → SEC Filings, and Kenvue’s at kenvue.com under Investors → Financials & reports → SEC filings.

Who may be soliciting proxies in connection with the Kimberly-Clark and Kenvue (KVUE) transaction?

Kimberly-Clark, Kenvue, and their respective directors, executive officers, and certain other management and employees may be considered participants in the solicitation of proxies from their stockholders regarding the proposed transaction.

What forward-looking risks are highlighted for the Kimberly-Clark and Kenvue (KVUE) merger?

The text notes risks around regulatory and stockholder approvals, potential termination of the merger agreement, integration challenges, rating agency actions, failure to realize anticipated benefits or synergies, litigation, business disruption, retention of key personnel and customers, product liability and safety issues, macroeconomic and geopolitical factors, supply chain disruptions, competition, and changes in laws and consumer behavior.

How are non-GAAP financial measures treated in the Kimberly-Clark and Kenvue (KVUE) combined projections?

The communication states that projected combined financial information is illustrative and not prepared under Regulation S-X pro forma rules, and that non-GAAP measures such as EBITDA, adjusted operating profit, and adjusted constant currency EPS growth have limitations and should not be viewed as substitutes for GAAP results.