London, June 12, 2026, 14:09 (BST)
- Reckitt shares traded up in London on Friday, outpacing the FTSE 100 in the session.
- The company repurchased 194,500 shares for treasury in its most recent disclosed buyback.
- Investors want to see if the half-year numbers in July point to a pick-up in growth and margins during the second half.
Reckitt Benckiser Group plc was up 1.38% at 4,643p in afternoon London trade Friday. The FTSE 100 added 0.93%. The Dettol, Durex and Nurofen owner was still moving after its latest daily report on the share buyback. Google Finance data showed Reckitt far from its 52-week high of 6,514p, so investors seem cautious even with Friday’s move higher.
Reckitt said in a filing it bought 194,500 ordinary shares on June 11, paying an average of 4,615.90p each. The company is keeping the repurchased stock in treasury, not cancelling it. Treasury shares cut the total voting shares and can help EPS since earnings are spread over fewer shares. Reckitt now holds 38,688,655 shares in treasury and has 635,317,097 ordinary shares outstanding, not counting treasury.
That’s key for the stock, since buybacks put a floor under capital returns just as the company tries to win back investor trust after a tough year. Reckitt said in its April trading update that its £1 billion buyback plan is still running, with £669 million of shares repurchased by April 17 since the programme started on July 28, 2025. Recent buybacks show management is still relying on cash returns to take some of the weight off slower sales and the changes in the portfolio.
Reckitt reported a mixed quarter. Core Reckitt posted 1.3% like-for-like net revenue growth for Q1, which cuts out things like portfolio changes and currency swings; without seasonal over-the-counter medicines, like-for-like revenue was up 3.1%. CEO Kris Licht said, “We maintain our LFL net revenue guidance for 2026.” The company kept its full-year Core Reckitt like-for-like net revenue growth target at 4% to 5%. Reckitt
Emerging markets, China, India, non-seasonal North America and new launches are key to the bull case for growth this year. Reckitt showed 7.6% like-for-like growth in Emerging Markets for Q1. Management is counting on the return of the cold-and-flu season and the June release of Mucinex 12 Hour Cold and Fever in North America to lift Q2 and the second half. Google Finance shows 7 Buys and 4 Holds from 11 analysts, with no Sells and an average 12-month price target of 6,050.70p.
Recovery still faces skepticism. Europe fell 4.2% like-for-like in Q1, North America slipped 0.9%, Mead Johnson Nutrition dropped 2.7%. Group IFRS net revenue slid 11.8%, mainly because Essential Home wasn’t counted after being sold. Reckitt flagged that if oil stays at $110 through 2026, gross input costs could rise by £130 million to £150 million. H1 adjusted operating profit margin is set to land about 200 basis points below H1 2025, hit by stranded costs, a weaker season, and pricier commodities.
Another overhang is the U.S. infant-formula lawsuits tied to Mead Johnson. Reuters said almost 1,000 cases have been filed against Abbott and Mead Johnson over alleged links between their products and necrotizing enterocolitis, or NEC, in premature babies. Both companies deny their formulas cause NEC. This legal overhang helps explain why the stock seems cheap but isn’t without risk.
Reckitt trades at a low valuation on current numbers. AJ Bell lists a 4.71% dividend yield and a 9.36 price-to-earnings ratio, while Google Finance has the P/E at 9.49. That is on the cheap side but the discount points to concerns: weak recent momentum, litigation worries, commodity price exposure, and pressure to deliver in the back half of the year. The next focus is the half-year results on July 29. Investors want to see if Reckitt is on track for its 4% to 5% Core Reckitt growth goal, margin recovery and buybacks.
