Kimberly-Clark is preparing a $4.9 billion bond offering to support its planned purchase of Tylenol maker Kenvue. A person familiar said the notes will come in five slices, running from two to 10 years, and asked not to be named because details are private.
Pricing has tightened. The longest note is expected to yield 0.72 percentage point over Treasuries, compared with early guidance around one point. Citigroup and Morgan Stanley are also on the ticket, alongside JPMorgan.
The company held investor calls on Friday as markets chopped around. Many issuers skipped high grade sales last week after Treasury yields swung on hotter than expected inflation data and anxiety around the artificial intelligence trade.
Kimberly-Clark's third quarter report lands Nov. 5. In general, issuers tend to avoid new bond deals for roughly the two weeks before they post results.
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JPMorgan Chase supplied a $7.7 billion bridge facility late last year to back the acquisition, and this new issue is expected to refinance that temporary borrowing. The transaction is mostly stock, currently values Kenvue at about $36 billion, and is seen closing by year end. The consideration includes $6.7 billion of cash, which Kimberly-Clark has said would be partly funded with new debt.
Kenvue, which was separated from Johnson & Johnson in 2023, has dealt with financial pressures and had a dispute with the Trump administration last year regarding Tylenol's safety. Its lineup spans Neutrogena, Listerine, Benadryl, and Band-Aid. When the tie up was unveiled last year, Kimberly-Clark said the combined business would generate $32 billion in revenue and move past Unilever to rank second in health and wellness, behind Procter & Gamble.
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