First Trade Date for Kimberly-Clark Corporation
| Company Name | First Trade Date (yyyy-mm-dd) |
| Kimberly-Clark Corporation | 1929-05-09 |
| Company Name | Symbol |
| Kimberly-Clark Corporation | KMB |
| History and Business of Company (this information may include date of incorporation) | |
|
Kimberly-Clark Corporation was incorporated in Delaware in 1928. As used in Items 1, 2, 3, 6, 7, 7A, 8 and 9A of this Form 10-K, the term "Corporation" refers to Kimberly-Clark Corporation and its consolidated subsidiaries. In the remainder of this Form 10-K, the terms "Kimberly-Clark" or "Corporation" refer only to Kimberly-Clark Corporation. For financial information by business segment and geographic area, and information about principal products and markets of the Corporation, reference is made to Item 7, "Management's Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations" and to Item 8, Note 15 to the Consolidated Financial Statements. Recent Developments. The Corporation is a global health and hygiene company focused on building its personal care, consumer tissue and business-to-business operations. Since 1999, the Corporation has completed approximately 20 acquisitions, each of which was accounted for as a purchase, in its core businesses and 3 strategic divestitures, including the following transactions: • On June 10, 1999, the Corporation purchased the European consumer and away-from-home tissue businesses of Attisholz Holding AG for approximately $365 million. The acquired businesses are located in Germany, Switzerland and Austria. • On September 23, 1999, the Corporation acquired Ballard Medical Products, a leading maker of disposable medical devices for respiratory care, gastroenterology and cardiology, at a cost of approximately $788 million, including the value of common stock exchanged and other costs of the transaction. • On September 30, 1999, the Corporation completed the sale of approximately 460,000 acres of timberland in Alabama, Mississippi and Tennessee for notes receivable having a face value of $397 million (and a fair value of $383 million). • On February 8, 2000, the Corporation acquired Safeskin Corporation ("Safeskin"), a leading maker of disposable gloves for health care, high-technology and scientific industries, in a merger transaction in which the outstanding Safeskin shares were converted into shares of Kimberly-Clark common stock. The transaction was valued at approximately $750 million. • On July 5, 2000, the Corporation acquired a majority of the shares of privately held S-K Corporation of Taiwan, which held trademark and distribution rights in Taiwan for the Corporation's global brands including Kleenex, Huggies and Kotex. Prior to the acquisition, the Corporation owned approximately 3 percent of S-K Corporation. • On December 20, 2000, the Corporation purchased an additional 33.3 percent ownership interest in its Taiwanese affiliate, Taiwan Scott Paper Corporation, increasing its ownership interest to 100 percent. • On January 31, 2001, the Corporation acquired Linostar S.p.A., a leading Italian-based diaper manufacturer that produced and marketed Lines, Italy's second largest diaper brand. • Prior to 2001, the Corporation and its joint venture partner, Amcor Limited ("Amcor"), held a 50/50 ownership interest in Kimberly-Clark Australia Pty. Ltd. ("KCA"). In July 2001, the Corporation purchased an additional 5 percent ownership interest in KCA for A$77.5 million (approximately $39 million), and exchanged options with Amcor for the purchase by the Corporation of the remaining 45 percent ownership interest. In June 2002, the option was exercised, and the Corporation purchased the remaining 45 percent interest from Amcor for A$697.5 million (approximately $390 million). The acquisition of KCA reflects the Corporation's strategy to expand its three business segments within Australia. As a result of these transactions, KCA became a consolidated subsidiary effective July 1, 2001 and a wholly-owned subsidiary on June 30, 2002. • During the first quarter of 2003, the Corporation purchased the Klucze tissue business in Poland. This acquisition is consistent with the Corporation's strategy of growing its global consumer tissue business and will provide it with a strong platform to expand its business in Central and Eastern Europe. • During the third quarter of 2003, the Corporation acquired an additional 49 percent interest in Kimberly-Clark Peru S.A. and the remaining 50 percent interest in its tissue joint venture in Brazil (Klabin Kimberly S.A.). The cost of these acquisitions totaled approximately $200 million. In January 2004, the Corporation announced changes to reorganize its personal care and consumer tissue businesses into two separate North Atlantic personal care and consumer tissue groups and to put its operations in developing and emerging markets into one group. The Corporation's business-to-business segment will now include its North American pulp operations. In addition, the wet wipes business will be part of the personal care segment instead of the consumer tissue segment. The Corporation will continue to have three global businesses led by individuals who have the accountability and the authority to make global decisions. This new structure is expected to help increase the Corporation's speed in translating consumer and customer insights into innovative products, streamlining decision making and helping to deliver cost reductions on a sustainable basis. On February 25, 2004, the Corporation announced that it was evaluating the potential tax-free spin-off of its Neenah Paper and Technical Paper businesses, along with its pulp and timber assets in Pictou, Nova Scotia and Terrace Bay, Ontario (the "Pulp and Paper Spin-Off"). The transaction is subject to approval by the Board of Directors and, if approved, is expected to occur in the second half of 2004. See the Business Outlook section in Item 7 for additional information regarding the Pulp and Paper Spin-Off. Description of the Corporation. The Corporation is principally engaged in the manufacturing and marketing of a wide range of health and hygiene products around the world. Most of these products are made from natural or synthetic fibers using advanced technologies in fibers, nonwovens and absorbency. The Corporation is organized into operating segments based on product groupings. These operating segments have been aggregated into three reportable global business segments: Personal Care; Consumer Tissue; and Business-to-Business. Each reportable segment is headed by an executive officer who reports to the Chief Executive Officer and is responsible for the development and execution of global strategies to drive growth and profitability of the Corporation's worldwide personal care, consumer tissue and business-to-business operations. These strategies include global plans for branding and product positioning, technology and research and development programs, cost reductions including supply chain management, and capacity and capital investments for each of these businesses. The principal sources of revenue in each of our global business segments are described below. Revenue, profit and total assets of each reportable segment are described in the financial statements contained in Item 8 of this Form 10-K. The Personal Care segment manufactures and markets disposable diapers, training and youth pants and swimpants; feminine and incontinence care products; and related products. Products in this segment are primarily for household use and are sold under a variety of brand names, including Huggies, Pull-Ups, Little Swimmers, GoodNites, Kotex, Lightdays, Depend, Poise and other brand names. The Consumer Tissue segment manufactures and markets facial and bathroom tissue, paper towels and napkins for household use; wet wipes; and related products. Products in this segment are sold under the Kleenex, Scott, Cottonelle, Viva, Andrex, Scottex, Hakle, Page, Huggies and other brand names. The Business-to-Business segment manufactures and markets facial and bathroom tissue, paper towels, wipers and napkins for away-from-home use; health care products such as surgical gowns, drapes, infection control products, sterilization wraps, disposable face masks and exam gloves, respiratory products, and other disposable medical products; printing, premium business and correspondence papers; specialty and technical papers; and other products. Products in this segment are sold under the Kimberly-Clark, Kleenex, Scott, Kimwipes, WypAll, Surpass, Safeskin, Tecnol, Ballard and other brand names. Certain products in this segment are being evaluated as part of the Pulp and Paper Spin-Off described above in Recent Developments. Products for household use are sold directly, and through wholesalers, to supermarkets, mass merchandisers, drugstores, warehouse clubs, variety and department stores and other retail outlets. Products for away-from-home use are sold through distributors and directly to manufacturing, lodging, office building, food service and health care establishments and other high volume public facilities. Health care products are primarily sold to distributors, converters and end-users. Paper products are sold directly to users, converters, manufacturers, publishers and printers, and through paper merchants, brokers, sales agents and other resale agencies. Paper products are being evaluated as part of the Pulp and Paper Spin-Off described above in Recent Developments. Approximately 13 percent, 12 percent and 11 percent of net sales were to Wal-Mart Stores, Inc. in 2003, 2002 and 2001, respectively, primarily in the Personal Care and Consumer Tissue businesses. Patents and Trademarks. The Corporation owns various patents and trademarks registered domestically and in many foreign countries. The Corporation considers the patents and trademarks which it owns and the trademarks under which it sells certain of its products to be material to its business. Consequently, the Corporation seeks patent and trademark protection by all available means, including registration. Employees. In its worldwide consolidated operations, the Corporation had nearly 62,000 employees as of December 31, 2003. | |
IMPORTANT DISCLAIMER: By reading any of the material on this website you agree to our DISCLAIMER: The Magi Society, Magi Astrologers Worldwide Corporation make no claims whatsoever concerning the validity of the information provided herein, and will not be held liable for any use thereof. No information or opinion expressed here is a solicitation to buy or sell securities, bonds, real estate, commodities, options, futures or any financial instruments whatsoever.
Back to first trade date main page
© 1999-2008 by Magi Astrologers Worldwide Corporation. All Rights Reserved.