London, 13 December 2025 — Reckitt Benckiser Group plc (LSE: RKT) heads into mid‑December with its shares hovering around the psychologically important 6,000p level after a strong year, as investors weigh three big forces: a steady stream of share buybacks, faster growth in emerging markets (especially China and India), and the ongoing legal overhang tied to U.S. infant-formula (NEC) litigation. [1]
What’s unusual (and very 2025) is that part of Reckitt’s growth narrative is being powered by modern commerce tactics—livestreaming, influencers and even AI-generated avatars—while the stock story remains anchored in old-fashioned capital returns and portfolio simplification. [2]
Reckitt Benckiser share price snapshot as of 13 December 2025
With UK markets closed on Saturday, the latest widely published reference point is Friday’s close.
- Reckitt share price: ~5,998p (close of 12 December 2025, delayed quote) [3]
- 52-week range (year low/high):4,579p to 6,050p [4]
- Market cap: about £40.36bn [5]
- P/E ratio: about 17.24 [6]
- Dividend yield: about 3.37% [7]
- 1-year performance: about +24% [8]
Those numbers frame the current debate nicely: the market is paying a mid‑teens earnings multiple and getting a mid‑single‑digit analyst upside case (more on that below), plus dividends and buybacks—while accepting litigation and execution risk.
Today’s “current” news flow: what’s actually moving RKT right now?
Even without a fresh Saturday headline, the most recent cluster of updates relevant to Reckitt stock (into 13 December) falls into four buckets:
1) Share buyback updates: the drumbeat continues
Reckitt has been consistently publishing “Transaction in Own Shares” announcements tied to daily repurchases. For example, in an announcement covering activity dated 11 December 2025, the company disclosed it bought 58,240 ordinary shares at a volume‑weighted average price a little over 6,009p, to be held in treasury—part of the mechanics of its broader buyback effort. [9]
This matters for equity investors for two reasons:
- it’s an ongoing source of demand for shares, and
- it signals the company is staying disciplined about returning capital during a portfolio transition year.
2) Emerging markets: China’s livestream machine and India’s physical reach
A Reuters report from early December detailed how Reckitt is leaning hard into digital commerce in China—where e‑commerce is now described as about 80% of its China sales (up from roughly 30% pre‑pandemic). Reuters also reported Reckitt said it had acquired around 40 million new customers in China in 2025, supported by massive volumes of short video and livestream output. [10]
At the same time, Reckitt’s India story is almost the mirror image: an Economic Times report highlighted management describing India as a “centre of brilliance,” with brands such as Dettol and Lizol reaching 10 million retail stores, underlining how critical offline distribution remains in that market. [11]
Investors are watching whether Reckitt can keep converting this emerging-market reach into durable volume growth, especially as developed markets remain competitive and more promotion-heavy.
3) Analyst sentiment shifted up in early December: Barclays turns more bullish
One of the more market-moving broker calls in the past two weeks: Barclays upgraded Reckitt to “Overweight” from “Equal Weight” and lifted its price target to 7,000p from 6,300p (reported by Reuters). [12]
A separate Investing.com write‑up attributed the change to “breakthrough” growth in China and India and described Barclays lifting its forecasts (including medium‑term emerging‑market growth expectations and margins vs consensus). [13]
Translation into stock language: at least one major bank decided Reckitt’s emerging-market execution is no longer “nice, but uncertain”—it’s investable enough to pay a higher multiple.
4) Portfolio simplification still in focus: Essential Home sale clock is ticking
Reckitt’s agreed transaction to divest a majority stake in Essential Home to Advent (while retaining 30%) remains a central strategic marker, with completion expected by 31 December 2025 per company statements and coverage. [14]
The deal has been widely framed as a way to concentrate on “core” higher-growth, higher-margin brands. It also comes with shareholder-return expectations, including an anticipated special dividend following completion (as laid out in company communications and deal reporting). [15]
What Reckitt said most recently about growth and guidance
The last major company-wide performance marker remains its Q3 2025 results package, which showed strong like‑for‑like momentum in Core Reckitt and a standout Emerging Markets print.
Key figures from the Q3 disclosure:
- Group Q3 LFL net revenue growth:+7.0% [16]
- Core Reckitt Q3 LFL net revenue growth:+6.7% [17]
- Emerging Markets Q3 LFL net revenue growth:+15.5% [18]
- Essential Home Q3 LFL net revenue growth:-4.9% [19]
- Mead Johnson Nutrition Q3 LFL net revenue growth:+22.0% (noting this segment has had volatility and is tied to litigation sensitivity) [20]
On outlook, Reckitt stated its FY 2025 outlook was maintained, including:
- Group LFL net revenue growth:+3% to +4% (FY 2025 expectation) [21]
- Core Reckitt: expected LFL net revenue growth above 4% in FY 2025 [22]
That combination—high-single-digit core growth in Q3 and a maintained full-year band—helps explain why the stock has held onto much of its 2025 gains near year highs. [23]
The emerging-markets “forecasts” Reckitt is explicitly steering investors toward
In early December, Reckitt also hosted an investor seminar focused on Emerging Markets. In its event notice, the company said it would discuss how it plans to drive sustainable high-single-digit LFL net revenue growth in Emerging Markets, contributing to its medium-term guidance for Core Reckitt of +4% to +5% LFL net revenue growth. [24]
Two additional details reinforce why markets care:
- Reckitt’s own reporting shows Emerging Markets are about 42% of Core Reckitt Q3 net revenues. [25]
- Reuters also reported that emerging markets (including China, India and Brazil) are about 42% of core net revenues, and cited Barclays analysts seeing potential to reach 50% by 2030. [26]
If you’re trying to understand the bull case in one sentence: Reckitt is trying to become a “faster-growing consumer health and hygiene compounder,” with emerging markets doing more of the heavy lifting each year.
Analyst forecasts and price targets: what Wall Street thinks RKT is worth
Analyst target prices around mid-December cluster in the low‑to‑mid £60s, implying low-single-digit upside from ~£60 (6,000p)—but with notable dispersion.
Here’s how several widely followed consensus trackers frame it:
- MarketScreener shows 16 analysts, a consensus labeled “Outperform,” with an average target price of £63.15 vs a last close around £60.00 (about +5% implied upside). [27]
- Investing.com’s consensus estimates similarly show an average 12‑month target around 6,315p, with a high estimate at 7,700p and low around 5,400p, and a mix of Buy vs Hold recommendations. [28]
- MarketBeat’s consensus summary (based on a smaller analyst set) shows an average target around 6,109p, with a wide range (roughly 5,200p to 7,700p). [29]
Why the targets differ: different platforms track different broker universes, refresh cycles and methodologies. But the shared message is consistent: the Street’s base case isn’t screaming “double it,” it’s closer to “modest upside plus shareholder returns”—unless either emerging markets accelerate further or risk clouds (especially litigation) clear faster than expected.
The buyback program: the capital return “floor” investors keep coming back to
Buybacks have been a persistent part of the Reckitt stock narrative in 2025.
From the Q3 materials, Reckitt noted a £1 billion share buyback programme commenced on 28 July 2025, and that by 21 October 2025 the first £250m tranche had been completed. [30]
Separately, a formal announcement on the second tranche described a structure designed to return up to another £250m, expected to run through 30 January 2026, with shares held in treasury until completion and then cancelled. [31]
In plain English: even if the broader market gets choppy into year-end, Reckitt has a programmed mechanism that can keep reducing share count—helping support per-share earnings and (often) sentiment.
The big risk that won’t go away quietly: U.S. infant formula (NEC) litigation
Reckitt’s infant nutrition business has been a recurring source of investor anxiety, largely due to U.S. litigation alleging links between certain cow’s‑milk-based preterm formulas and necrotizing enterocolitis (NEC).
Several credible legal and corporate updates in 2025 kept this issue in the headlines:
- Reuters reported in March 2025 that a court ruling allowed plaintiffs to seek a new trial in a Missouri case, which Reckitt said it would appeal; Reuters also noted the litigation sits within roughly 1,000 similar lawsuits and that the decision weighed on both Reckitt and Abbott shares. [32]
- Reckitt published its own statement disputing the ruling and reiterating its intent to appeal, arguing the decision conflicted with the evidence and the prior jury outcome. [33]
- Reuters also reported in June 2025 that an Illinois appeals court allowed thousands of cases to remain filed in Madison County, while noting a federal multidistrict litigation in Chicago involving 700+ similar cases. [34]
- In May 2025, Reuters reported a U.S. judge would allow expert testimony supporting plaintiffs’ claims in future trials (an important procedural point because expert admissibility can shape settlement leverage and trial outcomes). [35]
For Reckitt shareholders, the litigation question is less about day-to-day operations and more about tail risk: jury outcomes, appeals, venue decisions and settlement dynamics can all swing perceived liability and, in turn, valuation.
Bull case vs bear case for Reckitt stock into 2026
The bull case
Reckitt’s optimistic scenario (the one you can see being priced into upgrades like Barclays) looks like this:
- Emerging markets keep delivering outsized growth, with China’s digital engine and India’s distribution scale reinforcing each other. [36]
- Core growth remains strong (Q3’s +6.7% LFL in Core Reckitt is evidence the strategy is working). [37]
- Portfolio simplification (Essential Home divestment) reduces complexity and supports capital returns, including the special dividend expectation. [38]
- Buybacks keep shrinking the share count, boosting per‑share metrics even if top‑line growth normalises. [39]
The bear case
The cautious scenario is also straightforward:
- Litigation headlines create valuation caps and periodic drawdowns (especially if trials go badly or settlement expectations rise). [40]
- Growth in developed markets stays sluggish or becomes more promotion-driven, putting pressure on pricing/mix. (The Q3 regional mix shows Europe and North America were positive but much slower than emerging markets.) [41]
- The Essential Home separation generates costs and operational distractions—particularly as the company has flagged meaningful one-off cash costs related to separation. [42]
- Analysts’ consensus upside is modest; if execution stumbles, the stock doesn’t have a huge “valuation cushion” at ~6,000p and a mid-teens multiple. [43]
What to watch next: the near-term catalyst calendar for RKT shares
Heading into late December and early 2026, the most actionable signposts for investors are:
- Essential Home divestment completion by year-end 2025 (and any specifics around shareholder returns and mechanics once closed). [44]
- Continuation of buybacks into January 2026 under the second tranche structure. [45]
- Any material litigation milestones (trial scheduling, venue decisions, appellate outcomes, or settlement signals). [46]
- Reckitt’s next full results milestone — MarketScreener’s calendar points to a Q4/full-year earnings release in early March 2026. [47]
Bottom line for 13 December 2025
Reckitt Benckiser stock is sitting near year highs because the operational story has improved—with emerging markets and core execution doing the heavy lifting—while buybacks and dividends keep the shareholder-return engine humming. [48]
But the stock’s ceiling (for now) is still partly defined by two unresolved questions: how cleanly the portfolio simplification lands and how the U.S. infant formula (NEC) litigation evolves. [49]
References
1. www.hl.co.uk, 2. www.reuters.com, 3. www.hl.co.uk, 4. www.hl.co.uk, 5. www.hl.co.uk, 6. www.hl.co.uk, 7. www.hl.co.uk, 8. www.hl.co.uk, 9. www.investegate.co.uk, 10. www.reuters.com, 11. m.economictimes.com, 12. www.tradingview.com, 13. www.investing.com, 14. www.reckitt.com, 15. www.reckitt.com, 16. www.reckitt.com, 17. www.reckitt.com, 18. www.reckitt.com, 19. www.reckitt.com, 20. www.reckitt.com, 21. www.reckitt.com, 22. www.reckitt.com, 23. www.hl.co.uk, 24. www.reckitt.com, 25. www.reckitt.com, 26. www.reuters.com, 27. www.marketscreener.com, 28. www.investing.com, 29. www.marketbeat.com, 30. www.reckitt.com, 31. www.investegate.co.uk, 32. www.reuters.com, 33. www.reckitt.com, 34. www.reuters.com, 35. www.reuters.com, 36. www.reuters.com, 37. www.reckitt.com, 38. www.reckitt.com, 39. www.investegate.co.uk, 40. www.reuters.com, 41. www.reckitt.com, 42. www.reckitt.com, 43. www.hl.co.uk, 44. www.reckitt.com, 45. www.investegate.co.uk, 46. www.reuters.com, 47. www.marketscreener.com, 48. www.hl.co.uk, 49. www.reuters.com
