By Dave Sebastian

Kimberly-Clark Corp. said its sales for the fourth quarter rose as it continued to benefit from increased demand for home supplies during the Covid-19 pandemic, though profit fell as expenses rose.

The company behind Huggies diapers, Cottonelle toilet paper and other items on Monday posted a profit of $539 million, or $1.58 a share, compared with $547 million, or $1.59 a share, in the comparable quarter last year.

Adjusted earnings were $1.69 a share. Analysts were looking for $1.62 a share, according to FactSet.

Net sales rose 5.5% to $4.84 billion from $4.58 billion. Analysts were looking for $4.73 billion.

Personal-care sales rose 4.8% to $2.3 billion, and consumer-tissue sales rose 14% to $1.7 billion. Sales in K-C Professional, the company's segment that works with businesses, fell 9% due to lower away-from-home demand.

Write to Dave Sebastian at dave.sebastian@wsj.com

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

January 25, 2021 08:06 ET (13:06 GMT)