Consumer stocks are now as risky as they've ever been.
Unemployment's historically high,
consumers are spooked, and subpar earnings abound, as
companies pay the price for lost competitive advantage or
fiscal irresponsibility. But tough times can offer investors
the best chance to buy stocks.Â
Even if stock prices are low, investors still need to be
careful. Many companies simply won't survive the recession in
their current form. And even if you believe an investment's a
strong buy, it's always Foolish to play devil's advocate,
probing for its potential weak spots. To keep you and your
portfolio ready for anything, I've highlighted two reasons to
jettison personal- and health-care company
Kimberly-Clark (NYSE: KMB).
Mind the gap
In a companion article, I
threw my weight behindthis producer of popular consumer
brands such as Kleenex, Kotex, and Huggies. Now, I'm hot on
the trail of company traits that you'd prefer to wrap up in a
tissue and quickly discard. Â
1. Paper-thin profits
Lagging profitability reigns first among the reasons to
give Kimberly-Clark the axe. Not only has the company's
operating margin been on a steady decline for years, but it's
also fallen meaningfully behind its category peers. Just take
a look at the table below.
Company
OM 06
OM 07
OM 08
OM TTM
Kimberly-Clark
15.6%
14.9%
13.5%
14.7%
Procter & Gamble (NYSE: PG)
19.4%
20.0%
20.4%
20.4%
Colgate-Palmolive (NYSE: CL)
20.4%
20.8%
20.9%
22.1%
Church & Dwight (NYSE: CHD)
13.8%
14.2%
14.9%
15.9%
Johnson & Johnson (NYSE: JNJ) Continued... |