Kimberly-Clark (KMB)
Consumer Staples · $32.9B market cap · SEC CIK 0000055785
fundamentals score out of 100
Next reports on Oct 28, 2026, before the open, with analysts expecting $1.64 in earnings per share.
The case for KMB
- Earns 123% on shareholder equity, a figure flattered by a small equity base.
- Pays a 3.9% dividend while you wait.
- Reasonably priced at 16.9× earnings.
- Moves less than the market (beta 0.29).
The case against
- Revenue fell 12.2% year over year.
- Down 21.6% over the past year.
- Heavily leveraged. Debt is 3.7× equity.
- Priced at 21× book value. Very little hard asset backing here.
- Revenue has shrunk 3.0% a year over five years.
- Earnings per share fell 19.1%.
What the score is made of
Each factor is half a curve over reported figures and half a rank among the other Consumer Staples companies (momentum is judged against fixed thresholds only), and the five are blended by weight. It describes the last filing and the current price. It is not a forecast.
| Valuewhat you pay for the earnings, sales, assets and cash | 54 |
|---|---|
| Growthhow fast revenue and earnings are moving, this year and over five | 10 |
| Profitabilityhow much of the revenue becomes profit, and how much of that is cash | 67 |
| Momentumhow the price has behaved lately | 26 |
| Stabilityhow violently it moves, what it owes and what it pays you | 46 |
- Each factor except momentum is half fixed thresholds, half rank among the 36 Consumer Staples companies.
Key numbers
| Price / earnings | 16.9× |
|---|---|
| Price / book | 20.82× |
| Price / sales | 2.0× |
| Revenue growth (YoY) | -12.2% |
| EPS growth (YoY) | -19.1% |
| Gross margin | 38% |
| Operating margin | 15% |
| Net margin | 12% |
| Return on equity | 123% |
| Debt / equity | 3.74× |
| Current ratio | 0.91 |
| Dividend yield | 3.86% |
| Beta | 0.29 |
| 52-week range | $92.42 – $126.55 |
| Position in that range | 19% of the way up |
| 3-month return | -4.7% |
| 1-year return | -21.6% |
Five years of financials, as filed
Pulled from Kimberly-Clark's XBRL filings on SEC EDGAR. Italic rows are derived from the rows above.
| FY2025 | FY2024 | FY2023 | FY2022 | FY2021 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Revenue | $16.4B | $16.8B | $17.1B | $17.0B | $19.4B |
| Gross profit | $5.9B | $6.3B | $6.3B | $5.5B | $6.0B |
| Operating income | $2.4B | $2.7B | $1.9B | $2.3B | $2.6B |
| Net income | $2.0B | $2.5B | $1.8B | $1.9B | $1.8B |
| Operating cash flow | $2.8B | $3.2B | $3.5B | $2.7B | $2.7B |
| Capital expenditure | $1.1B | $721M | $766M | $876M | $1.0B |
| Total assets | $17.1B | $16.5B | $17.3B | $18.0B | $17.8B |
| Shareholder equity | $1.5B | $840M | $915M | $547M | $514M |
| Cash | $688M | $1.0B | $1.1B | $427M | $270M |
| Free cash flow | $1.6B | $2.5B | $2.8B | $1.9B | $1.7B |
| Gross margin | 36.0% | 37.4% | 36.6% | 32.6% | 30.8% |
| Operating margin | 14.3% | 16.1% | 11.2% | 13.6% | 13.2% |
| Net margin | 12.3% | 15.1% | 10.3% | 11.4% | 9.3% |
| Diluted shares | 333M | 337M | 339M | 338M | 339M |
Share count is essentially flat over 4 years.
What Kimberly-Clark says it does
Description of Kimberly-Clark Kimberly-Clark Corporation was founded in 1872 and incorporated in Delaware in 1928. We are a global company focused on delivering essential products and solutions that solve unmet consumer needs and provide Better Care for a Better World. We are principally engaged in the manufacturing and marketing of a wide range of products made from natural or synthetic fibers and materials using advanced technologies in fibers, nonwovens and absorbency. Kimberly-Clark and our trusted brands are an indispensable part of life for people in more than 175 countries and territories. Our portfolio of brands, including Huggies, Kleenex, Scott, Kotex, Cottonelle, Poise, Depend, Andrex, Pull-Ups, GoodNites, Intimus, Plenitud, Sweety, Softex, Viva and WypAll, hold No. 1 or No. 2 share positions in approximately 70 countries and encompass five global daily-need product categories: Baby & Child Care, Adult Care, Feminine Care,…
Risk factors KMB lists in its 10-K
- Significant increases in prices for raw materials, energy, transportation or other necessary supplies or services, without corresponding increases in our selling prices, could adversely affect our financial results
- Failure of key technology systems, cyberattacks, privacy breaches or data breaches could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition, results of operations and reputation
- There is no guarantee that our ongoing efforts to reduce costs will be successful
- Our operations in Russia and the surrounding region are impacted by the war in Ukraine
- Damage to the reputation of Kimberly-Clark or to one or more of our brands could adversely affect our business
- Our inability to attract and retain key personnel could adversely impact our business
- Disruption in our supply chain or our manufacturing or distribution operations could adversely affect our business
- Our engagement in business development activities, including acquisitions or divestitures of product lines or businesses, could impact our business, consolidated financial condition, results of operations or liquidity
- Disruptions in the credit markets or changes to our credit ratings may adversely affect our business
- Climate change and other sustainability matters may adversely affect our business and operations
- Intense competition for sales of our products, changes in consumer purchasing patterns and the inability to innovate or market our products effectively could have an adverse effect on our financial results
- Increasing dependence on key retailers and the emergence of new sales channels may adversely affect our business
- Government regulations and enforcement, and potential litigation, could have an adverse effect on our financial results
- New or revised tax regulations could have an adverse effect on our financial results