Kimberly-Clark Corp. 'A/A-1' Ratings Affirmed On Expectation Of Credit Measure Stability Despite Headwinds

U.S.-based Kimberly-Clark Corp. (KMB) faces meaningful currency headwinds and tough competition in certain of its segments, though we believe the company should be able to offset most of these hurdles through various measures. We are affirming all of our ratings on the personal care and tissue company, including our 'A' long-term and 'A-1' short-term corporate credit ratings. The stable outlook reflects our expectation that the company will maintain the ratio of funds from operations (FFO) to debt close to 40% through price increases, ongoing restructuring, commodity cost declines, and, if necessary, lower share buybacks. However, we could revise the outlook to negative over the next few quarters if we reassess our forecast, resulting in expectations for weaker credit metrics. CHICAGO

...+ U.S.-based Kimberly-Clark Corp. (KMB) faces meaningful currency headwinds and tough competition in certain of its segments, though we believe the company should be able to offset most of these hurdles through various measures. + We are affirming all of our ratings on the personal care and tissue company, including our 'A' long-term and 'A-1' short-term corporate credit ratings. + The stable outlook reflects our expectation that the company will maintain the ratio of funds from operations (FFO) to debt close to 40% through price increases, ongoing restructuring, commodity cost declines, and, if necessary, lower share buybacks. However, we could revise the outlook to negative over the next few quarters if we reassess our forecast, resulting in expectations for weaker credit metrics. CHICAGO (Standard & Poor's) Feb. 11, 2015--Standard & Poor's Ratings Services today affirmed all of its ratings on Dallas-based Kimberly-Clark Corp. (KMB), including the 'A' long-term and 'A-1' short-term corporate...

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