March 14, 2024
Top 10 Stock Kimberly-Clark Sell Recommendation
How to read the ranks
For every stock, we judge its performance against its peers and rank it on a scale of 1 to 100. The higher the rank, the better the stock performs than its peers. And, we do this for six investment strategies:
Value - shows how good of a value the stock is. Green is "inexpensive"; red is "expensive".
Growth - shows a company's growth potential. Green is "high growth" expected; red is "tough times ahead".
Safety - relates to the amount of debt a company has. Green is low debt level; red is high debt level.
Combined Financial - this isn't an average of the first three ranks but rather a consolidated view across several financial indicators. Green = good; red = tread carefully.
(NEW) Sentiment - quantifies professional analyst ratings and holdings as well as market pulse. Green = positive sentiment; red = skepticism (Only available to Premium Subscribers).
(NEW) 360° View - the ultimate rating with all financial and non-financial indicators.
Snapshot: Kimberly-Clark – Top 10 Stock in S&P 500 Consumer Staples Index
Kimberly-Clark is listed as a top 10 stock on March 14, 2024 in the market index S&P US Consumer because of its high performance in at least one of the Obermatt investment strategies. Only one consolidated Obermatt Rank is above-average. The company enjoys a positive professional investor sentiment, but all financial facts speak against a stock purchase. This is probably an investment into the future. Based on the Obermatt 360° View of 13 (13% performer), Obermatt issues an overall sell recommendation for Kimberly-Clark on March 14, 2024.
Snapshot: Obermatt Ranks
| Country | USA |
| Industry | Household Products |
| Index | Low Emissions, Dividends USA, Human Rights, S&P US Consumer, S&P 500 |
| Size class | XX-Large |
When Obermatt identifies the Top 10 stocks in a market, it’s based on a certain investment strategy. The best performing stocks usually aren’t the ones that everyone is talking about (those are often "over-priced" and have low Value ranks).
For each investment strategy, we provide you with more detailed analysis and our recommendation. You see the ranks of the top 10 stocks ranked by that particular investment strategy (360° View, Sentiment, Value, Growth, Safety and Combined Financial Performance).
360° View: Obermatt 360° View Kimberly-Clark Sell
| 360 METRICS | March 14, 2024 | |||||||
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| VALUE | ||||||||
| VALUE | 26 |
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| GROWTH | ||||||||
| GROWTH | 33 |
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| SAFETY | ||||||||
| SAFETY | 8 |
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| SENTIMENT | ||||||||
| SENTIMENT | 84 |
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| 360° VIEW | ||||||||
| 360° VIEW | 13 |
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ANALYSIS: With an Obermatt 360° View of 13 (better than 13% compared with alternatives), overall professional sentiment and financial characteristics for the stock Kimberly-Clark are critical, mostly below average. The 360° View is based on consolidating four consolidated indicators, with three out of four indicators below average for Kimberly-Clark. The consolidated Sentiment Rank has a good rank of 84, which means that professional investors are more optimistic about the stock than for 84% of alternative investment opportunities. But all other ranks are below average. The consolidated Value Rank has a rank of 26, which means that the share price of Kimberly-Clark is on the higher side compared with typical size in indicators such as revenues, profits, and invested capital. The consolidated Growth Rank also has a low rank of 33, meaning that the company exhibits below-average growth momentum when looking at financial metrics such as revenue, profit, invested capital growth, and stock returns. This means that growth is lower than for 33% of competitors in the same industry. Finally, the consolidated Safety Rank has a riskier rank of 8 which means that the company has a riskier financing structure than 92% comparable companies when looking at the amount of its debt, its refinancing requirements, and its ability to service debt. ...read more
RECOMMENDATION: With a consolidated 360° View of 13, Kimberly-Clark is worse than 87% of all alternative stock investment opportunities based on the Obermatt Method. This means that Kimberly-Clark shares are on the riskier side for investors. As only the professional market sentiment (Sentiment Rank of 84) is above-average, and all other consolidated Obermatt Ranks are below peers, the stock investing proposition case is rather weak. The stock price is expensive for a company of this size in this industry, visible in the below-average Value Rank. Growth is below the competition based on the Growth Rank, and the company has more debt than other companies, according to the Safety Rank. So the question becomes: How important is the Sentiment Rank when all others are below average? When it comes to growth, the low rating might be justified if growth is expected in the future and not yet reflected in current performance. This is often the case for companies with intellectual property, such as technology and pharmaceutical companies. In the early phases, these companies are expensive compared with their size and may have a lot of debt on their books, as is the case here, as seen in the low Value and Safety Ranks. Future growth may be the strongest investment rationale in this case, which is only reflected by institutional investors' opinions. You pay more than the market average for this stock and invest in a rather debt-loaded enterprise, but it may be worth it if the future of Kimberly-Clarḳ is bright. A small investment might be justified, but proceed with caution. ...read more
Sentiment Strategy: Professional Market Sentiment for Kimberly-Clark very positive
ANALYSIS: With an Obermatt Sentiment Rank of 84 (better than 84% compared with alternatives) for 2024, overall professional sentiment and engagement for the stock Kimberly-Clark is very positive. The Sentiment Rank is based on consolidating four sentiment indicators, with all but one indicator above average for Kimberly-Clark. Analyst Opinions are at a rank of 5 (worse than 95% of alternative investments), which means that currently, stock research analysts tend to warn against investing in the stock of the company. But they are changing their opinions! Analyst Opinions Change has a rank of 59, which indicates a shift in stock research experts opinions for the better. In other words, they are getting more optimistic about stock investments in Kimberly-Clark. Even better, the Professional Investors rank is 82, meaning that professional investors hold more stock in this company than in 82% of alternative investment opportunities. Pros tend to favor investing in this company. Furthermore, Market Pulse has a rank of 97, which means that the current professional news and professional social networks are upbeat when discussing this company (more positive news than for 97% of competitors). ...read more
RECOMMENDATION: With a consolidated Sentiment Rank of 84 (more positive than 84% compared with investment alternatives), Kimberly-Clark has a reputation among professional investors that is significantly higher than that of its competitors. While analysts are still critical of the company, some are changing their minds. In addition, the professional news channels are optimistic, and many institutional investors have already bought stock in the company. These are encouraging signals, despite the still lower level of analyst recommendations. They may be due to a problematic past, and about to change. The positive sentiment signals are stronger than the negative. ...read more
Value Strategy: Kimberly-Clark Stock Price Value below-average critical
ANALYSIS: With an Obermatt Value Rank of 26 (worse than 74% compared with alternatives), Kimberly-Clark shares are more expensive than the average comparable stock. The Value Rank is based on consolidating four value indicators, with three out of four indicators below average for Kimberly-Clark. Only the metric dividend yield has an above-average rank, reflecting that dividend practices are expected to be higher than 90% of comparable companies, making the stock an attractive buy for dividend investors. However, dividend investors may get disappointed because all other critical financial indicators are below the market median: Price-to-Sales is 27 which means that the stock price compared with what market professionals expect for future profits is higher than 73% of comparable companies, indicating a low value concerning Kimberly-Clark's sales levels. The same is valid for Price-to-Profit (also referred to as price-earnings, P/E) with a rank of 41 which means that the stock price compared with what market professionals expect for future profit levels is higher than 59% of comparable companies. In addition, Price-to-Book (also referred to as market-to-book ratio) with a Price-to-Book Rank of 3 is also low. Compared with invested capital, the stock price is higher than for 97% of comparable investments. ...read more
RECOMMENDATION: The overall picture with a consolidated Value Rank of 26, is a hold recommendation based on Kimberly-Clark's stock price compared with the company's operational size and dividend yields. Should dividend investors pick Kimberly-Clark? The company-reported financials speak against it. The company is expensive compared with revenue and invested capital levels, two reliable company size indicators. In addition, it currently has a low level of profits. How can future dividends be paid in the case that profits remain low? Dividend investors should choose Kimberly-Clark only if they reasonably expect the low current profit levels to be transitory. ...read more
Growth Strategy: Kimberly-Clark Growth Momentum low
ANALYSIS: With an Obermatt Growth Rank of 33 (better than 33% compared with alternatives), Kimberly-Clark shows a below-average growth dynamic in its industry. There is limited momentum in this company. The Growth Rank is based on consolidating four value indicators, with half of the indicators below and half above average for Kimberly-Clark. Profit Growth has a rank of 55, which means that currently professionals expect the company to grow its profits more than 55% of its competitors. This is a good sign for shareholders, which is confirmed by an above-average Stock Returns rank of 50 (above 50% of alternative investments). But Sales Growth has a below the median rank of 18, which means that, currently, professionals expect the company to grow less than 82% of its competitors, and Capital Growth also has a lower rank of 39. ...read more
RECOMMENDATION: The overall picture with a consolidated Growth Rank of 33, is a hold recommendation for growth and momentum investors. Because revenues and invested capital are the more solid growth indicators, the positive development on the profit side is less relevant. It may have been caused by cost-cutting, which may be a negative growth indicator. Finally, the above-average stock returns recently are a thing of the past and not a good indicator of future returns. Investors should be confident that the cost-cutting initiative leading to higher profits is to benefit the company's future. If not, there is little growth momentum, and investment is only advisable if the Value Ranks suggest a good investment timing for Kimberly-Clark. ...read more
Safety Strategy: Kimberly-Clark Debt Financing Safety risky
| SAFETY METRICS | March 14, 2024 | |||||||
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| LEVERAGE | ||||||||
| LEVERAGE | 7 |
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| REFINANCING | ||||||||
| REFINANCING | 11 |
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| LIQUIDITY | ||||||||
| LIQUIDITY | 76 |
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| CONSOLIDATED RANK: SAFETY | ||||||||
| CONSOLIDATED RANK: SAFETY | 8 |
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ANALYSIS: With an Obermatt Safety Rank of 8 (better than 8% compared with alternatives), the company Kimberly-Clark has much riskier financing practices than comparable other companies, which means that their overall debt burden is significantly above the industry average. This doesn't mean that the business of Kimberly-Clark is also risky, it only means that the company is on the riskier side in respect to bankruptcy in case things turn sour, assuming that public reporting is correct. The Safety Rank is based on consolidating three financing indicators, with just one indicator above average for Kimberly-Clark. Liquidity is at 76, meaning the company generates more profit to service its debt than 76% of its competitors. This indicates that the company is safer when it comes to debt service. But Refinancing is riskier at a rank of 11, which means that the portion of the debt that is about to be refinanced is above average. It has more debt in the refinancing stage than 89% of its competitors. Leverage is also high at a rank of 7, which means that the company has an above-average debt-to-equity ratio. It has more debt than 93% of its competitors. ...read more
RECOMMENDATION: With a consolidated Safety Rank of 8 (worse than 92% compared with alternatives), Kimberly-Clark has a financing structure that is significantly riskier than that of its competitors. High Leverage (a low Obermatt Leverage Rank) is good in good times, because it usually indicates that shareholders get higher returns. The good Liquidity performance of the company is an indicator that this is the case. However, if you expect an economic downturn, you may stay clear of this stock because they have an above-average debt level that needs refinancing soon. ...read more
Combined financial peformance: Kimberly-Clark Lowest Financial Performance
| COMBINED PERFORMANCE | March 14, 2024 | |||||||
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| VALUE | ||||||||
| VALUE | 26 |
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| GROWTH | ||||||||
| GROWTH | 33 |
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| SAFETY | ||||||||
| SAFETY | 76 |
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| COMBINED | ||||||||
| COMBINED | 1 |
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ANALYSIS: With an Obermatt Combined Rank of 1 (worse than 99% compared with investment alternatives), Kimberly-Clark (Household Products, USA) shares have lower financial characteristics compared with similar stocks. Shares of Kimberly-Clark are low in value (priced high) with a consolidated Value Rank of 26 (worse than 74% of alternatives), show below-average growth (Growth Rank of 33), and are riskily financed (Safety Rank of 8), which means above-average debt burdens. ...read more
RECOMMENDATION: A Combined Rank of 1, is a sell recommendation based on Kimberly-Clark's financial characteristics. As the company Kimberly-Clark's key financial metrics all exhibit below-average performance, such as low value (Obermatt Value Rank of 26), low growth (Obermatt Growth Rank of 33), and risky financing practices (Obermatt Safety Rank of 8), it is a somewhat questionable stock investment, where the risk of paying too much for the shares is significant, unless the company has an exceptionally bright future. Such poor financial performance sometimes indicates that the company's business is all concentrated in some distant future. This is sometimes the case for high-tech or biotechnology companies. If they own properties that only provide cash flows in the future, the stock may look excessively expensive and risky today. In such cases, the Obermatt Method has limited value as it is based on facts we can observe today. If the facts are all in the future, stock investing becomes guesswork, and this should only be a driver in a limited number of investments that should only amount to a small fraction of a safe portfolio. ...read more
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