Capital Analysts LLC Lowers Stake in Kimberly-Clark Co. (NYSE:KMB)

Capital Analysts LLC reduced its stake in shares of Kimberly-Clark Co. (NYSE:KMB) by 19.7% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 572 shares of the company’s stock after selling 140 shares during the quarter. Capital Analysts LLC’s holdings in Kimberly-Clark were worth $70,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Bison Wealth LLC lifted its stake in Kimberly-Clark by 6.2% in the fourth quarter. Bison Wealth LLC now owns 4,586 shares of the company’s stock worth $557,000 after acquiring an additional 269 shares during the period. Cullen Investment Group LTD. purchased a new stake in Kimberly-Clark in the fourth quarter worth about $594,000. Cornercap Investment Counsel Inc. lifted its stake in Kimberly-Clark by 1.9% in the fourth quarter. Cornercap Investment Counsel Inc. now owns 14,631 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,778,000 after acquiring an additional 279 shares during the period. Grove Bank & Trust lifted its stake in Kimberly-Clark by 1.8% in the fourth quarter. Grove Bank & Trust now owns 9,767 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,187,000 after acquiring an additional 177 shares during the period. Finally, Carnegie Capital Asset Management LLC lifted its stake in Kimberly-Clark by 12.4% in the fourth quarter. Carnegie Capital Asset Management LLC now owns 12,264 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,490,000 after acquiring an additional 1,350 shares during the period. 76.29% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Kimberly-Clark Stock Performance

KMB opened at $126.83 on Friday. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $124.26 and its 200-day moving average price is $122.33. The company has a market cap of $42.73 billion, a P/E ratio of 24.39, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.74 and a beta of 0.40. Kimberly-Clark Co. has a 52-week low of $116.32 and a 52-week high of $147.87. The company has a quick ratio of 0.54, a current ratio of 0.82 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 6.94.

Kimberly-Clark (NYSE:KMB) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, January 24th. The company reported $1.51 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.53 by ($0.02). The firm had revenue of $5 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.99 billion. Kimberly-Clark had a net margin of 8.63% and a return on equity of 260.47%. Kimberly-Clark’s quarterly revenue was up .7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $1.54 EPS. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Kimberly-Clark Co. will post 6.84 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Kimberly-Clark Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, April 2nd. Investors of record on Friday, March 8th were given a $1.22 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, March 7th. This represents a $4.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.85%. This is a positive change from Kimberly-Clark’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.18. Kimberly-Clark’s dividend payout ratio is currently 93.85%.

Insider Activity at Kimberly-Clark

In related news, insider Tristram Wilkinson sold 3,720 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred 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 sale, the insider now owns 17,229 shares in the company, valued at $2,084,709. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. In related news, Director Mark T. Smucker acquired 827 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, January 29th. The shares were acquired at an average price of $120.98 per share, for a total transaction of $100,050.46. Following the transaction, the director now owns 827 shares in the company, valued at approximately $100,050.46. The purchase was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, insider Tristram Wilkinson sold 3,720 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred 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 in the company, valued at approximately $2,084,709. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.62% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities analysts have commented on KMB shares. Piper Sandler boosted their target price on shares of Kimberly-Clark from $145.00 to $152.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, March 28th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted 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. Wells Fargo & Company boosted 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. Barclays boosted their target price on shares of Kimberly-Clark from $124.00 to $132.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Friday, April 12th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada reiterated a “sector perform” rating and issued a $123.00 target price on shares of Kimberly-Clark in a report on Thursday, March 28th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have assigned a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $131.85.

About Kimberly-Clark

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.