Kimberly-Clark Posts Higher Profit

Kimberly-Clark (NYSE:KMB) revealed a mixed bag of second-quarter earnings on Monday as Europe weighed heavily on the robust performance of other emerging markets.

The company also warned its full-year earnings could come in at the lower end of its guidance if volatility continues, contributing in part to a sell-off that sent its shares down close to 2% in early trade.

The Irving, Texas-based maker of personal-care items operating under brands like Kleenex, Kotex and Huggies reported net income of $547 million, or $1.36 a share, compared with a year-earlier profit of $518 million, or $1.26.

Excluding one-time items, Kimberly-Clark said it earned $1.41 a share, topping average analyst estimates in a Thomson Reuters poll by two pennies.

Revenue for the three-month period was $5.3 billion, matching a year ago but falling narrowly short of the Street’s $5.34 billion. The company said strong performance in its international group helped buoy mediocre results in developed markets, particularly in Europe.

“We generated $80 million of cost savings, improved adjusted operating profit margin by 80 basis points and delivered an 8% increase in adjusted earnings per share,” Kimberly-Clark CEO Thomas Falk said in a statement.

Kimberly-Clark affirmed its adjusted 2013 outlook of $5.60 to $5.75 a share, which it said now accounts for higher cost savings and a more negative impact from foreign exchange rates. Analysts on average are calling for earnings of $5.71.

Falk warned that if current rates hold going forward, it is “less likely” that adjusted earnings will be in the upper half of the guidance range. The macro environment, he said, has become more volatile recently, though Kimberly-Clark continues to be “optimistic about [its] prospects.”

Shares of the consumer products giant fell about 2% in early trade to $97.55. They remain up about 17% year-to-date.