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EL vs. KMB: Estée Lauder vs. Kimberly-Clark Stock Comparison

How do Estée Lauder (EL) and Kimberly-Clark (KMB) stack up? This page sets them side by side across company profile, performance and risk, profitability, growth, financial strength, dividends, and valuation, with selected fundamentals also measured against each stock's industry-group peers.

Company Profile

Estée Lauder (EL) and Kimberly-Clark (KMB) both fall under the Household & Personal Products industry group, but EL is classified in Personal Care Products while KMB is classified in Household Products.

Company profile comparison for Estée Lauder (EL) and Kimberly-Clark (KMB)
Profile ItemELKMB
NameThe Estée Lauder Companies Inc. Class A Common StockKimberly-Clark Corporation
Country/RegionUnited StatesUnited States
GICS SectorConsumer StaplesConsumer Staples
GICS Industry GroupHousehold & Personal ProductsHousehold & Personal Products
GICS IndustryPersonal Care ProductsHousehold Products
GICS Sub-IndustryPersonal Care ProductsHousehold Products
Market Capitalization39.37 billion USD36.63 billion USD
CurrencyUSDUSD
ExchangeNYSENasdaq
Listing DateNovember 17, 1995March 17, 1980
Security TypeCommon StockCommon Stock

Price Performance

Cumulative Growth

EL
KMB
GSPC
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Estée Lauder (EL) vs. Kimberly-Clark (KMB), with S&P 500 (GSPC) for reference: Growth of a $10,000 investment over the past five years. Adjusted for dividends and splits.

Trailing Returns

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Trailing total returns for Estée Lauder (EL) and Kimberly-Clark (KMB). Returns over one year are annualized.

Calendar-Year Returns

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Calendar-year total returns for Estée Lauder (EL) and Kimberly-Clark (KMB). Each bar is that year's total return, measured year-end to year-end.

Performance Metrics

Price performance metrics for Estée Lauder (EL) and Kimberly-Clark (KMB)
MetricELKMB
Total Return (1Y)10.78%-2.50%
Total Return (3Y, Annualized)-5.71%0.77%
Total Return (5Y, Annualized)-18.56%0.13%

Risk Profile

Drawdown History

EL
KMB
GSPC
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Estée Lauder (EL) vs. Kimberly-Clark (KMB), with S&P 500 (GSPC) for reference: Drawdown from the running peak over the past five years. Each line shows the decline from its prior peak; 0% marks a new high.

Return Distribution

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Distribution of monthly total returns for Estée Lauder (EL) and Kimberly-Clark (KMB). Each bar is the share of months whose return fell in that 5% bucket.

Risk Metrics

Risk profile metrics for Estée Lauder (EL) and Kimberly-Clark (KMB)
MetricELKMB
Volatility (1Y, Annualized)47.76%28.85%
Beta (5Y)1.240.26
Max Drawdown (5Y)-85.82%-34.06%
Avg. Volume (3M)3.10M4.18M

Risk-Adjusted Performance

Risk-Return Positioning

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EL and KMB are plotted by 1-year volatility (risk) and 1-year return. The dashed Capital Allocation Line runs from the risk-free rate through the shared industry median.

Risk-Adjusted Metrics

Risk-adjusted metrics for Estée Lauder (EL) and Kimberly-Clark (KMB)
MetricELKMB
Sharpe Ratio (1Y)0.13-0.24
Sortino Ratio (1Y)0.19-0.31

Profitability

ROE (TTM)

Kimberly-Clark (KMB) at 104.91% delivers above-range ROE, while Estée Lauder (EL) at 4.75% falls into the bottom quartile — a wide split in profit generated from equity.

EL

Household & Personal Products industry group

4.75%

Max
42.18%
Q3
30.23%
Median
15.51%
Q1
5.33%
EL
4.75%
Min
-16.09%

KMB

Household & Personal Products industry group

104.91%

KMB
104.91%
Max
42.18%
Q3
30.23%
Median
15.51%
Q1
5.33%
Min
-16.09%
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Estée Lauder (EL) vs. Kimberly-Clark (KMB): A comparison of their ROE against the Household & Personal Products industry group benchmark.

Net Margin (TTM)

Kimberly-Clark (KMB) at 11.79% keeps a top-quartile share of each sales dollar as profit, while Estée Lauder (EL) at 1.21% keeps a bottom-quartile share.

EL

Household & Personal Products industry group

1.21%

Max
18.32%
Q3
11.60%
Median
8.01%
Q1
2.75%
EL
1.21%
Min
-10.42%

KMB

Household & Personal Products industry group

11.79%

Max
18.32%
KMB
11.79%
Q3
11.60%
Median
8.01%
Q1
2.75%
Min
-10.42%
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Estée Lauder (EL) vs. Kimberly-Clark (KMB): A comparison of their net margin against the Household & Personal Products industry group benchmark.

Operating Margin (TTM)

Kimberly-Clark (KMB) at 19.00% carries a top-quartile operating margin, while Estée Lauder (EL) at 7.00% operates in the bottom quartile.

EL

Household & Personal Products industry group

7.00%

Max
27.06%
Q3
18.30%
Median
13.57%
Q1
9.52%
EL
7.00%
Min
-2.44%

KMB

Household & Personal Products industry group

19.00%

Max
27.06%
KMB
19.00%
Q3
18.30%
Median
13.57%
Q1
9.52%
Min
-2.44%
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Estée Lauder (EL) vs. Kimberly-Clark (KMB): A comparison of their operating margin against the Household & Personal Products industry group benchmark.

Profitability Metrics

Profitability metrics for Estée Lauder (EL) and Kimberly-Clark (KMB)
MetricELKMB
ROE (TTM)4.75%104.91%
ROA (TTM)5.23%10.20%
Net Margin (TTM)1.21%11.79%
Operating Margin (TTM)7.00%19.00%
Gross Margin (TTM)75.49%37.61%

Growth

Revenue Growth

Estée Lauder (EL) at 5.05% sits in the top revenue growth quartile, while Kimberly-Clark (KMB) at -2.13% is closer to the peer norm — faster top-line expansion for EL.

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Estée Lauder (EL) vs. Kimberly-Clark (KMB): A comparison of their Revenue Growth across different time periods.

EPS Growth

Only one side can be read here: Kimberly-Clark (KMB) reports EPS growth of -19.60%, ranked against its industry; Estée Lauder (EL) has no EPS growth figure this period.

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Estée Lauder (EL) vs. Kimberly-Clark (KMB): A comparison of their EPS Growth across different time periods.

Growth Metrics

Growth metrics for Estée Lauder (EL) and Kimberly-Clark (KMB)
MetricELKMB
Revenue Growth (YoY)5.05%-2.13%
Revenue Growth (3Y CAGR)-1.84%-6.58%
EPS Growth (YoY)---19.60%
EPS Growth (3Y CAGR)-43.62%1.94%

Financial Strength

Current Ratio (MRQ)

Estée Lauder (EL) at 1.22 keeps current ratio within its industry’s typical mid-range, while Kimberly-Clark (KMB) at 0.91 runs in the tighter-liquidity quartile — a thinner cushion against current liabilities for KMB.

EL

Household & Personal Products industry group

1.22

Max
3.94
Q3
2.70
Median
1.82
EL
1.22
Q1
0.98
Min
0.66

KMB

Household & Personal Products industry group

0.91

Max
3.94
Q3
2.70
Median
1.82
Q1
0.98
KMB
0.91
Min
0.66
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Estée Lauder (EL) vs. Kimberly-Clark (KMB): A comparison of their current ratio against the Household & Personal Products industry group benchmark.

Debt / Equity (MRQ)

Both Estée Lauder (EL) at 2.43 and Kimberly-Clark (KMB) at 3.49 lean more heavily on debt funding than most peers, landing in the higher-leverage quartile of their industries.

EL

Household & Personal Products industry group

2.43

Max
3.49
EL
2.43
Q3
2.16
Median
0.81
Q1
0.52
Min
0.06

KMB

Household & Personal Products industry group

3.49

KMB
3.49
Max
3.49
Q3
2.16
Median
0.81
Q1
0.52
Min
0.06
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Estée Lauder (EL) vs. Kimberly-Clark (KMB): A comparison of their debt-to-equity ratio against the Household & Personal Products industry group benchmark.

Financial Strength Metrics

Financial strength metrics for Estée Lauder (EL) and Kimberly-Clark (KMB)
MetricELKMB
Current Ratio (MRQ)1.220.91
Debt / Equity (MRQ)2.433.49
Net Debt / EBITDA2.341.60

Dividends

Dividend Yield (TTM)

Kimberly-Clark (KMB) at 4.52% delivers top-quartile income for its industry, while Estée Lauder (EL) at 1.30% pays a more typical yield — both are credible income propositions, KMB the richer one.

EL

Household & Personal Products industry group

1.30%

Max
5.61%
Q3
2.77%
Median
1.62%
EL
1.30%
Q1
0.00%
Min
0.00%

KMB

Household & Personal Products industry group

4.52%

Max
5.61%
KMB
4.52%
Q3
2.77%
Median
1.62%
Q1
0.00%
Min
0.00%
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Estée Lauder (EL) vs. Kimberly-Clark (KMB): A comparison of their dividend yield against the Household & Personal Products industry group benchmark.

Dividend Payout Ratio (TTM)

Both Estée Lauder (EL) at 280.00% and Kimberly-Clark (KMB) at 100.20% report payout ratio above 100%, meaning dividends exceeded current-period earnings on both sides.

EL

Household & Personal Products industry group

280.00%

EL
280.00%
Max
103.12%
Q3
85.84%
Median
51.27%
Q1
0.00%
Min
0.00%

KMB

Household & Personal Products industry group

100.20%

Max
103.12%
KMB
100.20%
Q3
85.84%
Median
51.27%
Q1
0.00%
Min
0.00%
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Estée Lauder (EL) vs. Kimberly-Clark (KMB): A comparison of their payout ratio against the Household & Personal Products industry group benchmark.

Dividend Metrics

Dividend metrics for Estée Lauder (EL) and Kimberly-Clark (KMB)
MetricELKMB
Dividend Yield (TTM)1.30%4.52%
Dividend Payout Ratio (TTM)280.00%100.20%

Valuation

P/E Ratio (TTM)

Kimberly-Clark (KMB) at 21.73 is near its industry’s usual P/E ratio, while Estée Lauder (EL) at 217.34 sits above its peer range — an unusually expensive price for EL’s trailing earnings.

EL

Household & Personal Products industry group

217.34

EL
217.34
Max
37.02
Q3
33.71
Median
21.73
Q1
16.81
Min
6.73

KMB

Household & Personal Products industry group

21.73

Max
37.02
Q3
33.71
KMB
21.73
Median
21.73
Q1
16.81
Min
6.73
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Estée Lauder (EL) vs. Kimberly-Clark (KMB): A comparison of their P/E ratio against the Household & Personal Products industry group benchmark.

P/S Ratio (TTM)

On P/S ratio, both Estée Lauder (EL) at 2.62 and Kimberly-Clark (KMB) at 2.21 are priced roughly in line with their industries — neither looks cheap nor rich on a sales basis.

EL

Household & Personal Products industry group

2.62

Max
4.24
Q3
3.00
EL
2.62
Median
1.88
Q1
0.75
Min
0.27

KMB

Household & Personal Products industry group

2.21

Max
4.24
Q3
3.00
KMB
2.21
Median
1.88
Q1
0.75
Min
0.27
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Estée Lauder (EL) vs. Kimberly-Clark (KMB): A comparison of their P/S ratio against the Household & Personal Products industry group benchmark.

P/B Ratio (MRQ)

Both look rich against book: Estée Lauder (EL) at 10.33 sits in the upper P/B ratio quartile, and Kimberly-Clark (KMB) at 20.93 prices even higher, above its industry range.

EL

Household & Personal Products industry group

10.33

Max
10.45
EL
10.33
Q3
7.66
Median
3.96
Q1
1.57
Min
-2.96

KMB

Household & Personal Products industry group

20.93

KMB
20.93
Max
10.45
Q3
7.66
Median
3.96
Q1
1.57
Min
-2.96
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Estée Lauder (EL) vs. Kimberly-Clark (KMB): A comparison of their P/B ratio against the Household & Personal Products industry group benchmark.

Valuation Metrics

Valuation metrics for Estée Lauder (EL) and Kimberly-Clark (KMB)
MetricELKMB
P/E Ratio (TTM)217.3421.73
P/S Ratio (TTM)2.622.21
P/B Ratio (MRQ)10.3320.93
Free Cash Flow Yield (TTM)4.60%2.57%