Kimberly-Clark Corporation Stock Buy Recommendation Reiterated (KMB)

Editor's Note: TheStreet ratings do not represent the views of TheStreet's staff or its contributors. Ratings are established by computer based on metrics for performance (which includes growth, stock performance, efficiency and valuation) and risk (volatility and solvency). Companies with poor cash flow or high debt levels tend to earn lower ratings in our model.

NEW YORK (TheStreet) -- Kimberly-Clark Corporation (NYSE:KMB) has been reiterated by TheStreet Ratings as a buy with a ratings score of A+ . The company's strengths can be seen in multiple areas, such as its revenue growth, solid stock price performance, reasonable valuation levels, increase in net income and expanding profit margins. We feel these strengths outweigh the fact that the company has had generally high debt management risk by most measures that we evaluated.

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Highlights from the ratings report include:

• KMB's revenue growth has slightly outpaced the industry average of 7.2%. Since the same quarter one year prior, revenues slightly increased by 0.2%. Growth in the company's revenue appears to have helped boost the earnings per share.
• The stock has risen over the past year as investors have generally rewarded the company for its earnings growth and other positive factors like the ones we have cited in this report. Turning our attention to the future direction of the stock, it goes without saying that even the best stocks can fall in an overall down market. However, in any other environment, this stock still has good upside potential despite the fact that it has already risen in the past year.
• The net income growth from the same quarter one year ago has greatly exceeded that of the S&P 500, but is less than that of the Household Products industry average. The net income increased by 22.1% when compared to the same quarter one year prior, going from $408.00 million to $498.00 million.
• 37.70% is the gross profit margin for KIMBERLY-CLARK CORP which we consider to be strong. It has increased from the same quarter the previous year. Regardless of the strong results of the gross profit margin, the net profit margin of 9.50% trails the industry average.

Kimberly-Clark Corporation, together with its subsidiaries, engages in manufacturing and marketing health care products worldwide. The company operates in four segments: Personal Care, Consumer Tissue, K-C Professional and Other, and Health Care. Kimberly-Clark has a market cap of $34.17 billion and is part of the consumer goods sector and consumer non-durables industry. The company has a P/E ratio of 19.1, above the S&P 500 P/E ratio of 17.7. Shares are up 17.6% year to date as of the close of trading on Tuesday.

You can view the full Kimberly-Clark Ratings Report or get investment ideas from our investment research center.

--Written by a member of TheStreet Ratings Staff.

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