Jefferies downgrades Haleon to 'hold', cuts price target

4th Nov 2026 13:33

(Sharecast News) - Jefferies downgraded Haleon on Wednesday to 'hold' from 'buy' and cut the price target to 320p from 400p following the consumer healthcare firm's third-quarter update last week.

Haleon shares tumbled last Thursday after it cuts its full-year organic revenue growth guidance, pointing to soft third-quarter cold and flu sales. The company now expects 2026 organic revenue growth of around 2.5%, down from previous guidance of 3% to 5%.

In the three months to September end, organic revenue growth was 2.6%, below the company's expectations, with price up 2.1% and volume/mix up 0.5%.

Jefferies said that with guidance now downgraded, it thinks Haleon's commitment to high single-digit organic profit growth highlights an imbalance between profit and investment behind volume/mix.

"We now model a circa 150bp FY27 margin reset, cutting EPS 11% to circa 10% below consensus," Jefferies said. "The shares fell 16% last week, reflecting this risk, though we see no total shareholder return to our updated 320p PT while the earnings reset and reinvestment remain unproven."

At 1330 GMT, Haleon shares were up 1.8% at 331.40p.