Kimberly-Clark Inc. rose 1.1% in morning trade after it was upgraded to buy from hold at Deutsche Bank. Kimberly-Clark’s price target remains the same at $118. “While some may find it hard to get fired [up] about toilet paper and diapers and growth algorithm of 3% to 5% organic sales and mid to high singles EPS growth, [the] model has proven resilient in the face of emerging market headwinds and [the] portfolio is better optimized to grow following strategic actions,” the firm wrote in a note. The note also draws a comparison between the second half of 2015 and the second half of 2009, when a “combination of lower input costs, resilient pricing and cooperative category growth drove over three points of gross margin expansion.” Kimberly-Clark is down 9.3% for the year so far. The S&P is down 4.6% for the same period.
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