Listerine Mouthwash - Royalties in Perpetuity

This is a unique asset with a 144-year earning history of monthly payments for gross sales of Listerine Antiseptic. This royalty income is derived from what has been called one of the most remarkable business transactions in U.S. business history. As the winning bidder, you’ll own a royalty interest in the gross global sales of Listerine Antiseptic mouthwash. 

What is Being Sold. A royalty interest in the gross sales of Listerine Antiseptic. The royalty interest is derived from an 1881 agreement between the inventor of the Listerine formula and the original distributor of the Listerine product. The royalty agreement calls for a flat rate royalty on worldwide Listerine sales, for as long as Listerine is sold. The agreement has been in effect since 1881, and in 1959, its perpetual nature was upheld in U.S. federal court.

About the Asset. In 1879, Dr. JJ Lawrence invented Listerine and in 1881, licensed the secret formula to J.W. Lambert and Lambert Pharmaceutical Co., ultimately settling on a royalty based on the number of ounces sold, to be paid to him and his “heirs, executors, or assigns” for as long as Listerine was sold.

For the next 75 years, the Lawrence family collected these royalties, with the ownership stake splintering between various heirs, some of whom sold portions of their stake to additional owners (such as New York real estate broker John J. Reynolds, who acquired half of the share of these royalties from the Lawrence heirs in 1950). 

After Lambert Pharmaceutical merged with Warner-Hudnut in 1955, the newly merged management contested the $1.5 million a year they were paying in royalties in court… a case they famously lost in a decision that remains cited in contract law cases and classes today. 

As a result of this decision, the Listerine royalty payments will remain in force for the lifetime of the brand, paid to whoever owns a share. Today, those entities include not only the heirs of the Lawrence family but also various pension funds, universities, hospitals, and multiple individuals. 

Domestic production of Listerine is done in Pennsylvania, while according to Volza, the rest of the world primarily imports from Colombia, Thailand and India. 

Payment Schedule. U.S.-generated royalties are paid monthly, based on the prior month’s sales. Royalties from sales in all other countries are paid on a quarterly basis. These sales royalties are calculated on the gross sales of Listerine Antiseptic by Kenvue (previously Johnson & Johnson).

You’ll notice a spike in payments in the last month of every quarter (March, June, September, and December) due to the quarterly foreign royalty payments.  A split of foreign royalties is not being reported by Kenvue starting in June 2023 -March 2025, as a result, the breakout is estimated based on the average historical reporting at 70% International and 30% Domestic in those payment months. This breakout was reported for the June 2025 earnings and forward.