Kimberly-Clark (KMB) Set to Announce Earnings on Tuesday

Kimberly-Clark (NYSE:KMB) will release its earnings data before the market opens on Tuesday, April 23rd. Analysts expect Kimberly-Clark to post earnings of $1.59 per share for the quarter. Persons that wish to listen to the company’s earnings conference call can do so using this link.

Kimberly-Clark (NYSE:KMB) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, January 24th. The company reported $1.51 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.53 by ($0.02). The company had revenue of $5 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.99 billion. Kimberly-Clark had a net margin of 8.63% and a return on equity of 260.47%. Kimberly-Clark’s revenue was up .7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $1.54 EPS. On average, analysts expect Kimberly-Clark to post $7 EPS for the current fiscal year and $7 EPS for the next fiscal year.

Kimberly-Clark Price Performance

KMB opened at $125.45 on Tuesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 6.94, a quick ratio of 0.54 and a current ratio of 0.82. The stock has a market capitalization of $42.27 billion, a P/E ratio of 24.13, a P/E/G ratio of 3.73 and a beta of 0.40. The company’s 50-day simple moving average is $123.84 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $122.20. Kimberly-Clark has a 52-week low of $116.32 and a 52-week high of $147.87.

Kimberly-Clark Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, April 2nd. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 8th were given a dividend of $1.22 per share. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, March 7th. This represents a $4.88 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.89%. This is a positive change from Kimberly-Clark’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.18. Kimberly-Clark’s dividend payout ratio is presently 93.85%.

Insider Activity

In other news, insider Tristram Wilkinson sold 3,720 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, January 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $121.00, for a total transaction of $450,120.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 17,229 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,084,709. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. In related news, Director Mark T. Smucker purchased 827 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, January 29th. The stock was bought at an average cost of $120.98 per share, for a total transaction of $100,050.46. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 827 shares in the company, valued at $100,050.46. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, insider Tristram Wilkinson sold 3,720 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, January 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $121.00, for a total value of $450,120.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 17,229 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,084,709. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 0.62% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Kimberly-Clark

A number of institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. DZ BANK AG Deutsche Zentral Genossenschafts Bank Frankfurt am Main lifted its position in Kimberly-Clark by 17.9% in the fourth quarter. DZ BANK AG Deutsche Zentral Genossenschafts Bank Frankfurt am Main now owns 340,692 shares of the company’s stock worth $41,397,000 after buying an additional 51,732 shares during the last quarter. Sanibel Captiva Trust Company Inc. purchased a new stake in Kimberly-Clark in the fourth quarter worth $3,061,000. Harbour Investments Inc. increased its stake in Kimberly-Clark by 44.0% in the fourth quarter. Harbour Investments Inc. now owns 25,950 shares of the company’s stock worth $3,153,000 after purchasing an additional 7,927 shares during the period. Clarity Asset Management Inc. purchased a new stake in Kimberly-Clark in the fourth quarter worth $41,000. Finally, Mango Five Family Inc. purchased a new stake in Kimberly-Clark in the fourth quarter worth $762,000. 76.29% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

KMB has been the subject of several research reports. Barclays upped their price target on shares of Kimberly-Clark from $124.00 to $132.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Friday. Royal Bank of Canada reaffirmed a “sector perform” rating and set a $123.00 price target on shares of Kimberly-Clark in a research report on Thursday, March 28th. Evercore ISI raised shares of Kimberly-Clark from an “in-line” rating to an “outperform” rating and increased their target price for the stock from $133.00 to $150.00 in a report on Thursday, March 28th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their target price on shares of Kimberly-Clark from $119.00 to $125.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a report on Thursday, January 18th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company increased their target price on shares of Kimberly-Clark from $125.00 to $131.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Thursday, March 28th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have given a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Kimberly-Clark currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $132.43.

Kimberly-Clark Company Profile

Kimberly-Clark Corporation, together with its subsidiaries, manufactures and markets personal care and consumer tissue products in the United States. It operates through three segments: Personal Care, Consumer Tissue, and K-C Professional. The company's Personal Care segment offers disposable diapers, training and youth pants, swimpants, baby wipes, feminine and incontinence care products, reusable underwear, and other related products under the Huggies, Pull-Ups, Little Swimmers, GoodNites, DryNites, Sweety, Kotex, U by Kotex, Intimus, Thinx, Poise, Depend, Plenitud, Softex, and other brand names.