Should Henkel Buy Olaplex?
The financial community is weighing the pros and cons of a possible acquisition of hair care brand Olaplex by Henkel AG.
It is in response to a Bloomberg report published Wednesday that Germany’s Henkel has proposed a takeover offer for Olaplex Holdings Inc., based in New York.
Due to market-share losses and weak organic growth, Olaplex’s stock has declined more than 90 percent since the group went public in September 2021 on the Nasdaq. But the stock soared yesterday on Bloomberg’s speculation, closing Wednesday up 22.2 percent.
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At noon ET Thursday, Olaplex’s stock was trading up 0.3 percent to $1.66. The company’s market capitalization is $1.09 billion.
Meanwhile, Henkel stock had risen 1.5 percent to 69.70 euros.
According to Bloomberg, the deal could happen within weeks, although it is not certain to come to fruition. The news outlet estimated private equity concern Advent International is Olaplex’s largest shareholder, with about a 75 percent stake.
“We do see Henkel looking to extend its presence in hair care, diluting its exposure to home care and building on a consumer division that has been restructured over the last three years,” Ashley Helgans, an equity analyst at Jefferies, wrote in a note.
The bank had earlier this week flagged Henkel’s potential interest in Wella, which is now owned by KKR.
“That would be a larger hair care scale-up, but is not precluded if Henkel was to successfully close on Olaplex,” Helgans continued. “Henkel might feel it can leverage its wider global channel presence more effectively. International currently represents approximately 50 percent of Olaplex net sales.”
Bernstein is less bullish on a deal, however.
“While the super-prestige hair category is attractive, Olaplex’s specific challenges and Henkel’s own execution issues make this potential acquisition risky,” wrote Ivan Holman, consumer sector specialist at Bernstein.
This all comes as beauty gears up to have a busy M&A year in 2026, following an uptick in deals during 2025.
In late August 2025, for instance, Olaplex announced its acquisition of Purvala Bioscience, a biotech company based in Boston. L’Oréal, E.l.f. and Ulta were among other groups making big purchases in the space.
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