Dana Investment Advisors Inc. Sells 3,572 Shares of Kimberly-Clark Co. (NYSE:KMB)

Dana Investment Advisors Inc. trimmed its stake in Kimberly-Clark Co. (NYSE:KMB) by 2.4% during the second quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 146,435 shares of the company’s stock after selling 3,572 shares during the period. Kimberly-Clark comprises about 0.7% of Dana Investment Advisors Inc.’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 29th largest position. Dana Investment Advisors Inc.’s holdings in Kimberly-Clark were worth $20,237,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of KMB. CX Institutional increased its holdings in Kimberly-Clark by 1.2% during the 2nd quarter. CX Institutional now owns 5,968 shares of the company’s stock valued at $825,000 after purchasing an additional 71 shares in the last quarter. Capital Investment Counsel Inc increased its stake in shares of Kimberly-Clark by 0.8% in the first quarter. Capital Investment Counsel Inc now owns 10,019 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,296,000 after buying an additional 75 shares in the last quarter. Connecticut Wealth Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of Kimberly-Clark by 4.6% in the first quarter. Connecticut Wealth Management LLC now owns 1,755 shares of the company’s stock valued at $227,000 after buying an additional 77 shares during the last quarter. Equitable Trust Co. lifted its position in Kimberly-Clark by 0.9% during the 2nd quarter. Equitable Trust Co. now owns 9,066 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,253,000 after buying an additional 80 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Comprehensive Financial Consultants Institutional Inc. grew its holdings in Kimberly-Clark by 1.6% during the 1st quarter. Comprehensive Financial Consultants Institutional Inc. now owns 5,093 shares of the company’s stock worth $659,000 after acquiring an additional 81 shares during the last quarter. 76.29% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

KMB has been the topic of a number of research reports. Piper Sandler upped their target price on shares of Kimberly-Clark from $167.00 to $174.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, July 11th. Barclays decreased their price objective on Kimberly-Clark from $136.00 to $135.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, July 19th. Royal Bank of Canada reissued an “outperform” rating and issued a $165.00 target price on shares of Kimberly-Clark in a research note on Wednesday, July 24th. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price target on Kimberly-Clark from $138.00 to $134.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, July 24th. Finally, TD Cowen assumed coverage on Kimberly-Clark in a research report on Tuesday, July 23rd. They issued a “buy” rating and a $161.00 price objective for the company. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have issued a hold rating and seven have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $145.67.

Kimberly-Clark Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:KMB opened at $142.29 on Tuesday. The company has a market capitalization of $47.91 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 26.16, a P/E/G ratio of 3.00 and a beta of 0.39. The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $142.13 and its 200 day simple moving average is $136.83. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 5.59, a current ratio of 0.85 and a quick ratio of 0.58. Kimberly-Clark Co. has a fifty-two week low of $116.32 and a fifty-two week high of $149.30.

Kimberly-Clark (NYSE:KMB) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, July 23rd. The company reported $1.96 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.71 by $0.25. Kimberly-Clark had a net margin of 11.28% and a return on equity of 223.55%. The company had revenue of $5.03 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $5.10 billion. During the same period last year, the firm posted $1.65 earnings per share. The business’s quarterly revenue was down 2.0% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Kimberly-Clark Co. will post 7.25 earnings per share for the current year.

Kimberly-Clark Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, October 2nd. Shareholders of record on Friday, September 6th will be issued a $1.22 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, September 6th. This represents a $4.88 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.43%. Kimberly-Clark’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 89.71%.

Insider Transactions at Kimberly-Clark

In related news, insider Jeffrey P. Melucci sold 37,699 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, July 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $141.42, for a total transaction of $5,331,392.58. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 19,935 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,819,207.70. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. In other news, insider Gonzalo Uribe sold 1,780 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, July 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $140.84, for a total value of $250,695.20. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 7,377 shares in the company, valued at $1,038,976.68. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, insider Jeffrey P. Melucci sold 37,699 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, July 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $141.42, for a total value of $5,331,392.58. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 19,935 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,819,207.70. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.62% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Kimberly-Clark 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.