A Motley Fool columnist picks Kimberly-Clark over Lululemon Athletica as the better consumer goods stock for 2027, citing its defensive profile. Kimberly-Clark, maker of Kleenex and Huggies, posted 2025 revenue of nearly $16.4 billion, down about 2.1%, with net income of roughly $2 billion. It has $956 million in cash and $6.5 billion in debt. The stock yields 4.6%, and the company has raised its dividend for 54 consecutive years. Lululemon's 2025 revenue grew nearly 4.9% to about $11.1 billion, with net income of roughly $1.6 billion. It holds $1.3 billion in cash and $2.1 billion in debt. The columnist notes risks for both: Kimberly-Clark's Kenvue acquisition, and Lululemon's new chief executive officer and trade policy changes.

Kimberly-Clark has completed its acquisition of Kenvue and says it remains on track to deliver about $1.9 billion in cost synergies, executives said on the third-quarter earnings call. About one-third of the savings should come from overhead, including some role eliminations. Another 30% to 40% should come from cost of goods sold, such as procurement and distribution, with the rest from sales, marketing and trade-spending efficiencies. Chairman and chief executive officer Mike Hsu said the new operating model took effect this week. The first 100 days will focus on keeping operations running and capturing early savings, with growth the aim for 2027. The company expects 2027 adjusted EPS dilution of no more than the mid-single digits, then mid- to high-single-digit EPS growth in 2028 on a two-year compounded basis.

ETFs were net sellers of Kimberly-Clark (KMB) on Tuesday, pulling out $558.4 million. The SPDR S&P Dividend ETF (SDY) led the selling with $243.7 million, cutting its stake by 45.4%. NOBL sold $131.6 million and SPYD $77.2 million. Overall, 35 ETFs bought shares while 18 sold, but the buyers' amounts were smaller. The outflow followed a $2.42 billion net inflow on November 2. ETFs were net buyers on four of the last five reported days. Kimberly-Clark, maker of Huggies, Kleenex, and Kotex, has a market cap of $66.8 billion. Its shares are up 11.99% this year, with a dividend yield of 4.73%.