Kimberly-Clark forecast annual adjusted profit growth ahead of Wall Street estimates and reported better-than-expected quarterly sales as the Kleenex tissue maker benefited from a recovery in demand.
The company has let go of its private label diaper-making business and has chosen instead to invest in marketing and advertising of its own brands such as Huggies.
While Kimberly-Clark has tempered price hikes, much like other consumer goods companies, volumes recovered in the fourth quarter and rose 1.5%, while prices increased 0.6%.
The company's quarterly net sales of $4.93 billion (€4.7 billion) beat the average analyst estimate of $4.86 billion (€4.7 billion), according to data compiled by LSEG.
The results were in line with those from consumer goods bellwether Procter & Gamble, which beat quarterly profit and sales estimates on resilient demand in the United States, as well a recovery in China.
Performance Highlights
Kimberly-Clark has also maintained a tight lid on operating costs, helping gross margins rise 50 basis points, compared with last year on an adjusted basis, despite higher manufacturing and supply chain costs in the quarter.
Annual adjusted earnings per share are expected to rise by a mid-to-high single-digit percentage on a constant-currency basis, compared with estimates of a 3.2% increase to $7.58 per share.
Volumes in Kimberly-Clark's North America business grew 1.9% in the quarter ended 31 December.
On an adjusted basis, the company earned $1.50 per share, compared with estimates of $1.51.
Commenting on its full-year performance, chair and CEO, Mike Hsu, stated, "2024 was a breakthrough year for Kimberly-Clark with the launch of our transformative, multi-year Powering Care strategy and successfully rewiring our organisation into three powerhouse segments with world-class functional support."
"Our full-year results exceeded our new long-term growth algorithm - supported by consistent execution across the organisation - and we established a strong foundation to accelerate our strategy in 2025 and beyond."
News by Reuters, additional reporting by ESM.
