Kimberly-Clark Corp. is principally engaged in the manufacturing and marketing throughout the world of a range of products for personal, business and industrial uses, mostly made from natural and synthetic fibers. For the FY ended 12/31/00, net sales increased 7% to $13.98B. Net income rose 8% to $1.8B. Revenues reflect increased sales of Personal Care products and higher prices. Earnings also reflect higher margins due to lower manufacturing costs.

April 1, 2001

KMB, a global leader in the production and marketing of numerous household and industrial products, has been a very strong market performer for the better part of a year. By supplying the world with products that people will always need, KMB has been able to maintain stable earnings. KMB is expected to post profits of $3.65 for fiscal 2001. The company has a very modest forward P/E of 18.6, which offers jittery investors a little bit of cushion in this nervous market. This fact partly explains why KMB has been able to hold its stock value while so many other stocks have floundered. KMB has spent the past several trading sessions consolidating its gains from earlier this year. This process may be nearing its completion, enabling the stock to resume its up trend. New positions can be added as KMB crosses over its 50-DMA of $67.88. Some of you may want to wait until it becomes clear that KMB will close above the 50-DMA on volume that put the stock on track to do 2 million shares by day’s end. Money Flow has been outstanding and the OBV is improving. Although the MACD is still negative, it appears to have stopped its decent and could be poised to trigger a buy signal soon. We are placing stops at $62.50 in case KMB brakes support at $65.50.

Picked on April 1st @ $67.83
Change since picked +0.00
Stop Loss $62.50

April 19, 2001

The rotation out of cyclical stocks into technology shares extended the pullback in KMB. In fact, KMB dropped below its 200-DMA of $63.13 yesterday and we were subsequently stopped out of this position. KMB's correction will likely continue until the current technology stock euphoria and bottom fishing subsides.

Picked on April 1st @ $67.83
Profit/Loss -5.33 (8%) (Stopped Wednesday @ $62.50)
Best Profit +0.69 (1%)

April 17, 2001

As we have stated before, the pullback in KMB is most likely due to some portfolio adjustment by traders who no longer feel they need the safety that KMB provides. One excuse for selling KMB today was the news that its Ballard Medical Products subsidiary received a warning from the FDA for failing to follow rules in collecting and reporting quality control data. Nevertheless, KMB did find support today at the critical 200-DMA of $63.00. If this support continues to hold it will likely signify the end of the short term stock price weakness. Nevertheless, new investment in KMB should probably be avoided until the stock can prove that the short term downtrend is over. The MACD is still negative and the OBV is starting to slip. If KMB can prove that it can stabilize with some consolidation trading over the next couple of days, the stock will become a more compelling buy.

Picked on April 1st @ $67.83
Change since picked -3.93
Stop Loss $62.50

April 12, 2001

KMB has been a favorite vehicle for long-term investors looking for stable growth and relative security in a volatile market. The company's long list of well known industrial and home use paper products provides an enviable level of earnings stability during an economy that is experiencing a slowdown in many areas. KMB has been pulling back a bit recently in a likely attempt to consolidate following last month's nice move to the low $70's. Look for KMB to start to rally this week once some profit taking hits the technology stock universe. One possible entry point for traders may be when KMB trades above its 5-DMA of $66.22. It would be encouraging if KMB could make this move with first hour trading volume of over 400,000 shares. We like the fact that down days for KMB have mostly been accompanied by relatively low volume. This fact is reflected in a stable OBV. The MACD is still negative but could easily issue a buy signal if KMB can just move a little higher this week. Momentum investors looking for an entry point may want to wait for not only the MACD to turn positive but also wait for the stock to move above the 50-DMA of $68.31 before going long.

Picked on April 1st @ $67.83
Change since picked -2.30
Stop Loss $62.50