Tylenol, which contains acetaminophen, has been at the center of a controversial claim that it is linked to autism.
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Consumer giant Kimberly-Clark, which makes Huggies diapers and Kleenex wipes, is buying the company that makes Tylenol and Band-Aids in one of the biggest mergers of the year.
The deal, worth nearly $49 billion, comes at a particularly difficult time for Tylenol maker Kenvue, after the Trump administration linked acetaminophen, the active ingredient in the common painkiller, to autism. These claims were made despite a lack of clear scientific evidence, and Kenview called them simply false.
For Kimberly-Clark, the deal opens up a new range of consumer brands. In addition to Tylenol, Kenvue also owns other major pharmacies such as Band-Aid, Listerine, Neutrogena and Aveeno.
This was stated by Kimberly-Clark CEO Mike Xu. announcement on Mondaythat the two “iconic companies” will create a “global leader in health and wellness.”
Executives from both companies said the combined entity will serve people “at every stage of life” and benefit from Kenvue's relationships with dermatologists, dentists, pediatricians and other health care providers.
Kimberly-Clark is trying to challenge the dominance of consumer giant Procter & Gamble, whose business spans all drugstore shelves, including cold and digestive medicine.
And the Kenvue has been on sale for a while now, ever since it was spun off from Johnson & Johnson in 2023. Its share price collapsed within months of going public, losing a third of its value since the start of the year before Monday's news.
On Monday morning, Kenvue's share price jumped about 17%, while Kimberly-Clark's share price fell about 12%.
