On August 18, 2026, Hims & Hers Health, Inc. (NYSE:HIMS) CEO Andrew Dudum told CNBC that a Federal Trade Commission lawsuit over the company’s data-sharing and subscription practices “misunderstands how the company works.” He defended the company’s compounded GLP-1 drug sales as having helped lower prices for weight-loss treatments.
Why This Matters
Hims & Hers is fighting a federal regulator’s characterization of its core business at the same time it’s trying to expand into AI-driven healthcare tools.
That raises the real question: is the FTC’s lawsuit a real threat to how Hims & Hers operates, or a misreading of a business model regulators don’t fully understand yet?
Strong Fundamentals Give Hims & Hers Leverage Amid Regulatory Heat
Dudum’s defense of the GLP-1 business sits on top of real numbers: Hims & Hers Health, Inc. (NYSE:HIMS)’s second-quarter revenue jumped nearly 40% year over year to $753 million. With 300,000 new subscribers pushing the global base to almost 3 million, the firm raised its full-year revenue forecast to $3.1 billion-$3.3 billion. That growth means the affordability argument Dudum is making isn’t just talk; it lines up with a business that’s genuinely adding paying customers at a fast pace. It gives the company real momentum to point to while the legal case plays out. International revenue also grew more than 17-fold to $131 million following the Eucalyptus acquisition, which shows Dudum’s growth story extends well beyond the US market the FTC is focused on.
Hims & Hers: Shrinking Margins and FTC Heat Endanger Growth
Hims & Hers Health, Inc. (NYSE:HIMS)’s earnings report shows tension building underneath the growth since adjusted gross margin fell to 64% from 76% a year earlier. Free cash flow was negative $68 million, with the company posting an $86.3 million net loss driven partly by legal costs tied to a settlement and acquisition charges. That combination, slowing profitability plus an active FTC lawsuit over the exact GLP-1 and subscription practices driving the growth, means the legal risk sits directly on top of a business that is already burning cash to expand. An active FTC lawsuit creates legal and reputational exposure regardless of how confident the CEO sounds in interviews. Framing the business as an affordability solution doesn’t answer the FTC’s specific data-sharing and subscription allegations, which only a court case or settlement can actually resolve.
Conclusion
Dudum’s public defense is confident. However, an active FTC lawsuit doesn’t resolve itself through interviews. Investors will need the legal process, not just the CEO’s framing, to know how much risk the case really carries.
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Disclosure: None. This article is originally published at Insider Monkey.
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