Haleon shares slip into the weekend after Redburn downgrade tests recovery hopes
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Haleon (LON: HLN) steady after 4% gain; oral care props up results

June 25, 2026
by

London, June 25, 2026, 13:05 BST

  • Haleon is around 348p after gaining 4.3% on Wednesday
  • JPMorgan lowered its target to 315p. The LSEG median was 422.5p as of June 18.
  • Oral Health contributed roughly 2.6 percentage points to organic growth in the first quarter
  • Company bought back stock at an average 332.4p. Half-year results scheduled for July 30.

Haleon PLC was flat around 348 pence Thursday, after gaining 4.3% the day before. The FTSE 100 was up 0.45% in the afternoon.

Haleon shares bounced even as JPMorgan Chase & Co cut its price target to 315p from 335p and stuck with an underweight. That new target is about 9.5% under where the stock traded Thursday. A June 18 LSEG poll showed a median target of 422.5p, up 21.4% versus the shares, with targets from 325p to 512p. JPMorgan has now moved its target under even that prior range.

Haleon’s growth mix remains tough. First-quarter organic sales rose 2.2%. Price added 2.4%, but volume and mix slipped 0.2%. Oral Health was strong, up 8.3% to £932 million in revenue. Using category data, Oral Health gave about 2.6 points to group growth. The other five categories cut group growth by around 0.4 point. “We expect growth to accelerate across the balance of the year,” Chief Executive Brian McNamara said. Haleon Corporate

Oral Health made up 32.6% of Haleon’s sales for the quarter but brought in more than the company’s total net growth. Respiratory Health dropped 3.4% on an organic basis and took about 0.6 percentage point off group growth. Quilter Cheviot analyst Chris Beckett said after the results, “Haleon isn’t a million miles away from being a very good story, but it needs more than the toothpaste business to start performing.” Reuters

Haleon held on to its 2026 forecast for organic revenue growth between 3% and 5%, along with high-single-digit adjusted operating profit growth at constant currencies. Simple math on reported 2025 revenue shows the next nine months need about 3.3% organic growth to meet the low end of the target, and around 6% for the upper end.

Haleon’s buyback remains in focus. The company’s latest filing said 14.29 million shares were repurchased and cancelled from June 16 to June 18. Total cost came in at about £47.5 million, with a volume-weighted average price of 332.4p—roughly 4.7% lower than Thursday’s close.

Haleon’s £500 million buyback runs through August 19 at the latest, covering closed periods as well. The programme is set to cross Haleon’s July 30 half-year update, a point where the company could show if growth is happening outside Oral Health.

North America remains a question. In February, McNamara told Reuters, “We feel confident the U.S. will grow this year, and by 2027 we’ll be back to our medium-term growth range.” The numbers out July 30 will show if the first part holds up. Reuters

Marcin Frąckiewicz

Marcin Frąckiewicz is the CEO of TS2 Space and a longtime technology entrepreneur focused on telecommunications, satellite communications and digital innovation. A graduate of the Warsaw School of Economics (SGH), he writes about space technology, artificial intelligence and publicly traded technology companies. His analysis covers major market trends, emerging technologies and the businesses shaping the future of the global economy.

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