Kimberly Clark Corp (NYSE:KMB), the maker of Huggies diapers and other consumer goods, reported first-quarter earnings that were in line with the expectations of Wall Street analysts despite taking a massive charge related to its restructuring program.
Kimberly-Clark’s net income fell to US$93mln or 26 cents per share in the first quarter, down from US$563mln or US$1.57 per share in the year-ago period due to a US$577mln charge in the quarter related to its restructuring. On an adjusted basis, its e.p.s. of US$1.71 per share handily surpassed the expectations of Wall Street analysts who had expected US$1.68 per share.
With help from its personal care unit, the group’s sales came to US$4.73bln in the quarter, which beat Wall Street’s expectations of US$4.6bln.
Its restructuring, which is set to persist until 2021, is expected to be expensive as Kimberly-Clark anticipates US$1.7bln to US$1.9bln worth of expenses related to it through 2020.
Kimberly-Clark continues to expect 2018 earnings of US$6.90 to US$7.20 per share, which is in line with consensus expectations of US$6.96 per share for the year.
In pre-market trade, Kimberly Clark is up 1.97% to US$102.00.