HIGHLIGHTS
After taking a hiatus for the last few years this August the markets returned to their historical late summer doldrums. After generating a nice little pop, +1.48%, on the first trading day of the month the large cap S&P 500 Index stayed in a relatively narrow range, ending the month up 2.62%, extending the YTD rally to 12.28%, excluding dividends. The Wellvest H&W Index did the same thing, only in reverse, down 1.09% for the month and negative 1.35% for the year. While a few names had a fantastic month, the 26 losers outweighed the 20 winners, pulling down the average.
Earnings matter more now than ever in the health and wellness sector. It was promising to see The Honest Company (HNST) posted $0.04 earnings per share against a $0.02 consensus estimate. While revenue was down year over year, the top line beat estimates as well. Net income more than doubled, supported by improved gross margins and tariff refunds. Management struck a bullish tone and raised revenue guidance to $319-325M. The Street rewarded the stock with a 56.7% gain for the month.
CONSOLIDATION CONTINUES
The largest sector story of the month was Canadian vitamins and supplements giant Jamieson Wellness (TSE: JWEL) announcing a definitive agreement on August 6, 2026, to be acquired by Japanese beverage and health conglomerate Kirin Holdings (TYO:2503) for C$2.5 billion ($33.00-33.50 USD per share). This transaction is a meaningful one, as Kirin can execute on its global ambitions and scale after acquiring Blackmores and FANCL in recent years. To do this Kirin established “Kirin Health Science International” with the strategy of building a unified global supply chain, standardize IT processes, and combine the technological assets of FANCL, Blackmores, and Jamieson under a centralized portfolio. Keep an eye on this once quiet player.
About WELLVEST CAPITAL’S HEALTH AND WELLNESS PUBLIC COMPANY INDEX
In 2021 with the intention of capturing the new health and wellness investment dynamic, Wellvest Capital created our proprietary “Health and Wellness Index” (WVC H&W Index). This index is comprised of approximately 50 US publicly listed companies of all capitalizations that are active participants in the health and wellness industry providing a wide range of goods and services. Being a rapidly evolving sector with many emerging small-capitalized businesses competing with legacy large cap companies, the index utilizes an equal weighted calculation methodology. Better-for-you food and beverages, vitamins & supplements, fitness apparel and equipment, ingredient suppliers and weight loss are characteristic of the categories included. Beyond Meat, Lululemon, Oatly, SunOpta, Nestlé, The Honest Company, Sprouts Farmers Market, and Peloton are representatives of the group.
Data sources: Pitchbook
Copyright: Wellvest Capital 2026