Kimberly-Clark De Mex A

Hello and welcome everyone, joining today's Kimberly Clark de Mexico fourth quarter 2025 earnings conference call. At this time, all participants are in a listen-only mode. Later, you will have the opportunity to ask questions during the question and answer session. To register to ask a question at any time, please press star and one on your telephone keypad. Please note this call is being recorded We are standing by if you should need any assistance. It is now my pleasure to turn the meeting over to CEO, Pablo Gonzalez. Please go ahead.

Thanks so much. Hello, everyone. Thanks for participating on the call. We wish you and your families a terrific 2026. We'll go straight to results and then make some brief comments about the quarter and our expectations going forward. So I'll pass it on to Javier.

Thank you, Pablo. Good morning, everyone. Our sales reached 14.1 billion pesos in the fourth quarter, an increase of 2.1% versus the same period of 2024. Total volume was flat and price mix improved 2%. Growth was driven by consumer products, which expanded 5.5%, supported by healthy year-over-year growth of 1.4% and price mix of 4.1%. Export hardware sales continued to decline as we converted more tissue toward higher value domestic products. Sequentially, results continued to improve from Q3 to Q4 as sales increased 4.8%, with consumer products up 8.5%, primarily volume-led, reflecting strong commercial execution, the planned innovations to products, and improved market dynamics. Cost of goods sold was flat, and as a percentage of sales improved by 130 basis points. Compared to last year, virgin fibers, recycled fibers, sand, and resins were favorable, partly offset by higher fluff costs. The peso remained supportive with an average appreciation of roughly 8%. Our cost reduction program once again delivered solid results, generating approximately 500 million pesos in savings during the quarter, mostly within cost of goods sold. These efficiencies came from sourcing, materials optimization, and ongoing process improvements across our operations. As a result, gross profit increased 5.4%, and our margin reached 40.4%, reflecting both disciplined revenue management and cost tailings. SG&A expenses increased 0.8% year over year, and as a percentage of sales decreased 22 basis points, as we continue to carefully prioritize brand investment and overhead efficiency. Operating profit grew 9.2%, and our operating margin expanded to 22.9%. We generated 3.7 billion pesos of EBITDA, an increase of 6%, with an EBITDA margin of 26.4%, a 140 basis point sequential improvement, and 100 basis point expansion versus the fourth quarter of 2024. Financing cost was 398 million pesos compared to 350 million last year, driven mainly by lower returns on cash balances. Net income reached 2.2 billion pesos with EPS of 73 cents, a 23% increase year over year. For the full year, sorry, sales reached an all-time record of 55.4 billion pesos, up 1.1%. EBITDA was 14.1 billion pesos, representing 25.5% of sales, while margins declined 170 basis points due to the cost pressures we faced, particularly during the first half of the year. Net income was 7.6 billion pesos or 13.7% of sales. Throughout 2025, our cost reduction initiatives delivered 1.95 billion pesos in savings, driven by sourcing, operating efficiencies, and product design optimization. We invested 1.8 billion pesos in CapEx, consistent with our plan, focused on technology upgrades cost reductions, efficiencies, and strategic capacity additions. We also repaid 3.7 billion pesos of debt, paid 6.2 billion pesos in dividends, and repurchased nearly 43 million shares, equivalent to 1.4% of shares outstanding. We closed the year with a strong and healthy balance sheet. Total cash stood at 9.7 billion pesos Net debt to EBITDA was 1.0 times, and EBITDA to net interest coverage remained very solid at 10 times. Thank you very much. I return it to Pablo.

Thanks. So, we continue to operate against a soft consumer backdrop. However, we've delivered year-over-year growth, strong margins, and a meaningful sequential improvement. consumer products' performance was notably stronger, supported by innovations and commercial initiatives. Overall, consumer confidence remains subdued and private consumption growth has moderated. Within retail, value formats and private label continue to gain share as shoppers seek savings, while e-commerce growth remains robust. Against this backdrop, our categories continue to show resilience, and our brands have benefited from our strong innovations price and mix discipline, and market execution. As we get into 2026, we have solid plans to strengthen our core businesses, accelerate growth in our diamond categories, expand into adjacencies of new categories, most notably pet food, as well as participate in markets we have traditionally not emphasized in the past, such as private label. On costs, we're seeing the benefits of lower pulp, recycled fibers, resins, and super absorbing materials, which together with a stronger PESO will provide important tailwinds as we move into 2026. Cost reduction program remains a key structural lever, will stay aggressive in sourcing, product design, and process efficiencies. A few additional comments before we open it up for Q&A. First, Jim Rittler Corporation, our strategic partner, announced in November its agreement to acquire Canview. This combination will create a leading global health and wellness company with a complementary consumer portfolio and expanded capabilities. As the transaction progresses towards closing, expected in the second half of 2026, we will evaluate potential strategic implications for Jubilee Clark for Mexico, including the possibility of integrating Canview's operations in Mexico. Our focus will remain on achieving operational excellence and capturing value accretive growth opportunities for the business. Additionally, we will hold our annual shareholders meeting on February 26th, where the board will propose a dividend increase in the high single digits, reflecting our solid cash generation and confidence in future performance. We will also propose a share repurchase program which will remain significant and aligned with our commitment to disciplined capital allocation. One final note, starting with the first quarter results, we will be releasing them to the public on the third Tuesday of the month after the end of a quarter, as soon as the board approves them at the regularly scheduled meetings late on the same day. We will hold our call early on Wednesday mornings. In summary, looking ahead to 2023, In 2026, we face external risks, including ongoing tariff uncertainty and a slower domestic demand backdrop tied to softer formal employment and slower remittances. However, we are optimistic. We are entering 2026 with better momentum than 2025, and we have mitigating factors to those risks, including our leading positions in essential categories, portfolio initiatives focused on value and affordability, continued excellent execution with customers, and of course, a robust balance sheet. With that, let me turn it over to questions.

Thank you. And if you would like to ask a question, please press star and one on your keypad. To leave the queue at any time, press star two. Once again, that is star and one to ask a question. Our first question comes from Alejandro Fuchs with Itaú. Please go ahead. Your line is open.

Thank you, operator. Thank you for the time for questions and congratulations on the results. I have two very quick ones. First, for Pablo, I was wondering if you could comment on the expectations for this year, maybe on competitive environment what you're expecting, and maybe if you can elaborate a little bit more into going into private label, how relevant do you think this will be for the business in the medium to longer term? And then the second one, very quickly to Xavier, was wondering, Xavier, if you could give us some color on the tax rate during the quarter. I think it was quite low, so maybe you could explain a little bit more what was the case. That would be very helpful. Thank you.

Claro. Thanks, Alejandro. Thanks for being on the call. Yeah, first on the competitive environment, I mean, we faced a pretty competitive environment during 2025, again, given that the economy is not growing much and consumption is subdued. I don't think it was more aggressive than in some years past, but it certainly was, I would say, maybe a tiny bit more aggressive. And we expect that to continue this year. I mean, we expect the economy to grow at a higher rate, not what it should be growing, but certainly at a higher rate. So, we expect categories to expand a little bit, but competitors to be aggressive to try and gain share and grow at a faster clip than categories. So, nothing that we haven't seen in the past. This is the The nature of our categories against that backdrop, I guess we perform very, very well, particularly in consumer products during the second half of the year. And we're entering with that momentum and with stronger shares into 2026. And we've got plans on innovation, price mix, et cetera, that I think will carry us forward. So we're pretty optimistic with the year as a whole. It might start a little bit slow, but I think for the year as a whole, we're pretty optimistic. On private label, as I mentioned in my opening remarks, and you guys know this, I mean, given the consumer is so stretched, private label has been gaining ground in many categories, not only ours. We've been able to send, on our part, the private label, given the strength of our shares, but it is no doubt increasing. It's important, and both hard discounters and overall retailers are pushing it forward. So what we decided to do is to participate more aggressively in private label, and we put together a dedicated team with dedicated assets to look into this with some early successes, and we will be going forward competing on private label and, of course, competing overall in the market for this business. So we expect this can be a benefit for us going forward. And together with, again, strengthening our core, accelerating time categories, being more aggressive on the supply chain front with Kimberly Clark Corporation, private label I think can add an additional opportunity for growth in the case of Mexico's case.

Javier on the tax rate? Sure, hello Alejandro. You're correct in pointing out that the tax rate, the effective tax rate shown on the fourth quarter was lower than what we traditionally have. And that, of course, also had an impact for the full year. This comes from an accounting adjustment that primarily reflects improvements in our estimation processes, and those yielded a more accurate estimate. And that allowed us to revert some provisions. This adjustment does not result from any change in our tax strategy, nor from the adoption of new tax positions or any aggressive tax assumptions. And it will also not impact how much taxes we pay. These are mostly accounting and non-cash adjustments. And let me underline that we continue to apply a consistent, conservative and very responsible approach to tax accounting. So hope that helps.

Perfect. Thank you, Pablo. Yes, super clear. Have a good weekend.

Thanks, Alejandro.

Thank you. Our next question comes from Ben Sur with Barclays. Please go ahead. Your line is open.

Yeah, good morning. Thank you very much as well for taking my questions. Congrats on the results. Two very quick ones. So one, obviously 2025, you've You've done a relatively good job on continued cost savings initiatives, and, I mean, the run rate was really good. So if you could share maybe how you think about that into 2026, also in the background of the better environment that you're expecting. And then as it relates to raw materials, I mean, I would say it was mixed, but obviously FX supported it. So how do you feel about the raw material price environment and then obviously as ethics as a tailwind and how that then ultimately comes down to profit margins into 2026? Thank you very much.

Thanks, Ben. Thanks for the questions. First, in the cost reduction program, as we've said before, I mean, this is really an essential part of our culture. And that's why year over year, we deliver very strong results. And we are confident 2026 will not be the exception. We have identified already upwards of 1 billion pesos in savings for this year, and most likely will be close to what we achieved in 2025. And again, this is just part of our culture of continuously looking for opportunities in product design and sourcing and materials and efficiencies to continue to improve our execution operationally. So we expect another strong year on our cost reduction program, and we are off to a very, very good start. When it comes to raw material price environment, I mean, we're entering 2026 in a very different position as most of our raw materials have come down, and we don't necessarily expect them to continue to go down throughout the year, but certainly they will compare very, very favorably at least through the first half of the year. And maybe through the whole year, I mean, it's hard to tell, you know, those things can – they're very volatile and they can change. But the scenario we're looking at right now is pretty favorable to start the year together with the exchange rate. So we do expect, as you could see in the fourth quarter, that to trickle down to our margins on the bottom line.

Perfect. Thank you very much.

Thank you, Ben.

Thank you. We will move next with Antonio Hernandez with Atkinson. Please go ahead. Your line is open.

Good morning. I wanted to check what's the current standpoint on the new tech partnership? At what stage are you currently in terms of operations, distribution, and ? Thanks.

Sure. Thanks, Antonio. As you know, we entered the pet food business in the second quarter of last year and really have been working on ramping that up over the last half of last year, and that will continue to be our priority this year. We continue to gain space at shelf as consumers have reacted very, very positively to the products, I would say particularly to the premium products. offering, so PrimeCare. And as that has happened, of course, retailers have become more and more interested in giving us more space, putting the brand out there, and that is allowing us to increase our penetration. And that'll be our main focus still on 2026, as we said from the very beginning, this is a category that will contribute to our results in the medium term, it won't be immediate. But I think we continue to make very good strides. And we believe 2026 will be a breakout year for us in that sense. And in the coming years, it should be a category that delivers more in terms of both top line and bottom line for Kimberly-Clark to Mexico.

Okay, thanks for the call. Thank you.

Thank you. We will move next with Renata Cabral with Citibank. Please go ahead. Your line is open.

Hi, good morning. Thank you so much for taking my questions. I have one that is a follow-up about the consumer segment that you just commented. Just would like to ask if you can provide some color in terms of price mix for this quarter. And since last quarter, I think it's performing really well. already commented some things about why this is going well. And my second question is if you can comment something about dividend and buybacks for 2026. Thank you.

Dividends and buybacks.

Sure. First, on the price mix, Renata, I mean, as we mentioned, consumer products overall grew 5% for the quarter. Volume was a little bit over 1%. And price mix was a different 4%. And when you look at price and mix, if you break it down, it was pretty much even. 2.1% price was up and mix was up 2%. And again, this is not only a testament to the discipline on our pricing, but also on our good commercial execution and the effort we've placed on improving our mix in all of our categories and driving consumers up to the higher tiers. And we've been very successful, for example, in doing that on bathroom tissue as we move users up to Cottonelle. So even in a very, I would say, subdued consumer environment, we've shown that we can bring mix and price to the table. So those two components together with gaining a little bit of volume, that's what really has delivered a very strong showing for consumer products in fourth quarter and also third quarter. So we'll continue to work on that, to think about where we see pricing opportunities, continue to push for a stronger, better mix, and, of course, continue to look for ways to grow the categories in volume. So it's really the combination of the three that allowed us to to post this results and that's the objective for 2026 is to continue to move on all those three funds. When it comes to dividends, as we mentioned, we will have our shareholder meeting late in February and we will be discussing with the board on February 10th, the dividend that we wanna propose and the repurchase program that we wanna go forward with But we are, we will, we know we'll be proposing a dividend increase in the high single digits. And again, this reflects our solid cash generation and confidence in future performance. So, it'll be another year where we provide this high single-digit dividend increase into 2026.

And we will also be proposing a share buyback period, which will continue to be significant.

That's great. Thank you so much for the call.

Thank you, Renata.

Thank you. We will move next with Ferlan Mendez with JP Morgan. Please go ahead. Your line is open.

Hello, guys. Thank you very much for taking my question. I have two. First, on your short-term and long-term thoughts about the degree of cannibalization between private label and your own branded portfolio. Where do you see it now and long-term? Is there some, let's say, mindset around what degree of cannibalization this can make to your long-term volumes in your core branded brands? And secondly, if you could share more thoughts around what the KingView potential acquisition in Mexico could mean in terms of incremental revenue, capex, returns, That's it. Thank you.

Thank you, Fräulein. Thanks for the question. First, on cannibalization, look, you know, with our strategy of multi-tier, multi-channel, multi-brand, in our categories, our brands have held up steady very, very nicely. I mean, our shares are very strong in many categories growing, even though private label in the category is growing. So in many, many instances, We're the number one player with very strong shares, and then private label is now the second player in those categories. So we will continue to focus on our brands, and I want to be very, very clear about that. Our brands are our priority. We're a branded consumer products company. But given the opportunity for growth in private label and the fact that we believe we could be good – partners with some of our clients in strategic areas. We want to participate. But our, again, multi-tier innovation program, multi-channel, multi-brand, continue to be the priority. And as it's held up very strongly to this point, we expect it to continue to hold on very strongly going forward. We just see an added opportunity for growth. if we can participate in private labels. And as we've started to do this, we've seen some early success. So we'll see what it means going forward. But I can't stress enough that our main priority is our brands, innovation behind our brands, and bringing to consumers the best products at the best cost in every single tier, in every single channel, with the best brands and preferred brands, which are ours. On the Canview issue, and thanks for asking that question, as I mentioned, we've just started conversations with our partners, with our strategic partner, and these conversations will evolve here through end of January, February, March. I'm going to say by April, we should have a much clearer understanding of where we stand what the Canview business in Mexico would mean for Kimberly-Clark Mexico and whether we can come to an agreement with our strategic partner as to how to move forward. So we'll have more information certainly in our conference call when we report first quarter results in April. But let me just say this. Our understanding is that on the top line, Canview Mexico is about roughly $300 million dollar in sales company. So it's about a tenth of where we stand. So not huge, but also not insignificant. It's a nice size and it would be a transaction that would add quite a few categories that we're interested in, in the health and wellness. And as we've always said, categories that have great growth potential, categories where we see we can add value given the way we operate, innovations, brands, channels, tiers, et cetera, categories where we think we can add value not only to consumers but also to clients, and that in the medium term would be accreted to our, of course, top line but also bottom line results and margins. So early. Again, we've just started the conversations, but it's a good opportunity for us. Again, not a huge one, but an opportunity that opens very nice windows of growth going forward that would add to our core diamond categories, new categories where we've entered, like PET, supply chain integration with Kimberley Clark Corporation, and if this happens, then Canview categories. The whole scenario, I think, paints a very good picture of the possibilities of growth for Kimberly-Clark in Mexico going forward.

Excellent. Thank you so much, Pablo, Javier. Thank you.

Thank you. Our next question comes from Bob Ford with Bank of America. Please go ahead. Your line is open.

Thank you so much. Good morning, Pablo, Javier, Salvador, Lisette, and congrats on the results. Pablo, given the concerns around private label, could you maybe provide some examples of innovations across major categories and price tiers and maybe touch on like some of the materials innovations, right? We're going through this pretty big technology cycle. And I'm just curious if there are any things that have been patented or maybe a a product cycle that you feel really comfortable that you can maintain leadership in for an extended period of time?

Yeah, thanks, Bob. Thanks for the question. You know, these are all very, very dynamic categories, and I can talk about a few of the things we did this past year. I wouldn't want to get ahead of myself and talk about 2026, but I'll give you some color on where we stand. But in 2025, for example, we In bathroom tissue, we introduced new products in a whole range of products, and particularly we were very aggressive in bringing new technologies into the premium category with Cotenel with great, great results. I mean, our sales in Cotenel are growing double digits and continue to do so very strongly. When you look at diapers, we also brought that. even a tier seven diaper to continue to premiumize the category with softness that is unparalleled in the market. And of course, the absorbency that consumers come to expect from hoggies. And we've also improved even our economy tiers with now stretchable ears in diapers, which is a first really for the economy tiers. So again, across all of the tiers, We've improved our products in feminine care. We brought a new nocturnal pad that is considered by consumers the best product in the market by an important margin, and it's just a new platform that we're bringing to that category. In incontinence, we brought new products, again, in pads and panty liners that are also preferred by consumers that also offer a new platform. very, very excited about what we've done and even more so with what we see going forward because I think we're going to be bringing to market some new technologies, first in market technologies and in some cases first to the world technologies that I think will continue to strengthen our platform, strengthen our brands and strengthen our position in the market. This is never-ending, and I'm very excited about our plans for 2026 and innovation, but already looking at 2027 and 2028 and making sure we bring very relevant innovations to market and try and step ahead, stay a step ahead of competition in every tier, in every channel going forward. So, sorry I can't say more about 2026, Bob. I'll share more as we go through the year and bring those innovations to market, but as you can see, I'm very, very excited with what I see we can bring to the table in this year.

I know. That's super well communicated. It's a great teaser. With respect to, you know, maybe playing a greater role in the supply chain, Can you touch on, you know, what you think your competitive advantages are, right? I mean, you're clearly doing a much more sophisticated kind of tiering of products. You're doing more, you know, shorter production runs. I'm familiar with some of the productivity rates that, you know, of, kind of like the Mexico versus the rest of the system. Beyond that, you know, what should we think about when it comes to, you know, maybe selecting Mexico to play a much bigger role in the North American supply chain?

That's a great question, Bob. Look, we are at a great point on that issue because after working with Kimberly-Clark on specific projects over the past years, we really have – it's come to the point where we're sitting down, we're taking a look at the whole supply chain, We are being completely transparent in putting the numbers out there, costs, efficiencies, logistics, et cetera, and identifying the biggest opportunities going forward. And as you mentioned, in many respects, and particularly when it comes to certain of the tiers in the market, we have advantages because of the way we operate, because of our costs. and because of how we know to manage different tiers, which again, it's much easier said than done. So, we're finding very interesting opportunities, but the key thing is where I started, that it's not now just, hey, we found this project, how do we move forth together with it? It's really a holistic look at the supply chain, figuring out where we can add value, figuring out where they can add value, and putting all of that together so that when we think of a project now, it's really for the medium and long term. It's not just a one-timer. We will still have some one-timers, but it is becoming more of a, hey, can we think of certain area of the U.S. where Mexico would be better positioned to supply products and put us in a better competitive position overall in such a market. So we're delighted that that's where the conversations stand and we just had our Kimberly-Clark board members attend our board meeting and they expressed the same confidence that we're finding very interesting opportunities and that we're very confident going forward our supply chains can come together and deliver very positive improvements for both Kimberly-Clark Corporation and Kimberly-Clark to Mexico. Again, another area where we're very excited and where we think that 26, 27 could be breakout years when it comes to really determining how to play together.

Great to hear. Congratulations on all the progress. Thank you so much. Thank you both.

Thank you. And once again, that is star N1 on your telephone keypad if you would like to join the queue. We will move next with Geronimo de Guzman with Inca Investments. Please go ahead. Your line is open.

Hi. Good morning. Thanks for taking my question. I had two questions. The first one was just a follow-up on what you talked about with the shift. You talked a little bit more about the shift or increasing the emphasis on private label and value. And I was just, you kind of touched upon it, but I just wanted to see if we should expect any kind of impact on pricing, flash mix, or, or margins as a result of this?

No, we don't think so, Jeronimo. Certainly not in the short term. And in the medium to long term, we'll see how successful we are and how many, how strongly we can participate. But of course, and you know our culture, we're already working into, okay, if we are very successful and can participate meaningfully, how do we change our cost structure? so that we continue to deliver the margins that we've targeted and that continue to be our target. So, no, don't expect a change anytime soon on that target. We will find ways to, over the medium to long term, be there within that target range.

Okay. Makes sense. Thank you. And then a question on? Just how are you thinking about pricing? Because you're mentioning the raw material environment being very supportive, but you're also talking about, you know, competition continuing to be aggressive, trying to gain shares. So, yeah, kind of how are you thinking about pricing going forward?

Thanks for the question. We are looking at all of the opportunities in pricing because notwithstanding, as you say, that raw materials are a tailwind right now, and so is the exchange rate. These are very volatile, particularly – well, both of them. And we've seen in past years that things can change relatively quickly. We don't expect that to happen, but it could. So we're ready. We're ready to move on pricing. And with our revenue growth management initiative, we're always looking for opportunities both on pricing and mix. So we – I would venture to say that you will see some pricing coming to the market this year and aiding our results. And again, we'll continue to work with the mix and you will see some mix also come into the equation and also help our results during the year. No specific plans at this point, but pretty confident that both factors will be relevant and help us with the results in 2026. Great.

Thank you very much. Thank you.

Thank you. Our next question comes from Juan Guzman with Scotiabank. Please go ahead. Your line is open.

Hi. Good morning, Pablo, Javier, Salvador, and all the team there. Congrats on the strong performance. Just one quick question here, as most of my questions have already been answered. Regarding away from home, given this 10% contraction that you mentioned due to channel inventory adjustments, what's your outlook for this business going forward? And even when it's early in the year, what trends have you been observing recently, and what strategies are you implementing to recover sales growth here? And that'll be it. Thank you very much.

Thanks, Juan. Thanks for the question. Yeah, not happy with the results on the professional side. Again, a combination of software economy and our wholesalers reducing their inventories given their concerns on the market. Having said that, again, we believe the economy will pick up a little bit this year, and particularly on that side when it comes to hotels, restaurants, et cetera, we will definitely see the benefit of at least some of the games of the World Cup being played in Mexico. not just because of some of the games. I think tourism overall will be a positive for the country this year. So we expect really this to turn around in the coming, I don't know, by the first quarter, I think we'll do quite better. And we're already seeing much better performance in the first quarter early, but we're seeing much better performance in the first quarter. But certainly by the second quarter, I think we'll see better performance and Our strategies, same as in consumer products, we're very clear of the different areas we want to go after and we're bringing also innovation and interesting, very interesting innovation to the different categories and we're working very, very closely with our wholesalers to go after specific accounts and to try and premiumize in different categories. not very different in terms of the strategies that we're pursuing in consumer products. And again, we expect this to turn around certainly by second quarter, and we expect the business as a whole to grow nicely throughout the rest of the year. And again, we're already starting to see early signs of that turnaround, but I think it'll take a little bit more, so maybe by second quarter.

Thank you very much. Thank you.

Thank you. And at this time, there are no further questions in queue. I will now turn the meeting back to Pablo Gonzalez for closing remarks.

Well, thanks again, everyone, for participating. As you can see, very exciting things going on at Kimber Clark, the Mexico, and we'll have more to share when we have our call on April, certainly on many of the initiatives that I just mentioned. on innovation, on Canview, et cetera. So looking forward to it and looking forward to have a very good year at Kimberly-Clark, New Mexico. And with that, again, thanks so much and hope that you also have a terrific 2026. Thank you all.

Thank you. This brings us to the end of today's meeting. We appreciate your time and participation. You may now disconnect.