Kimberly-Clark (NASDAQ:KMB) Hits New 12-Month Low on Analyst Downgrade

Kimberly-Clark Corporation (NASDAQ:KMB) shares hit a new 52-week low during mid-day trading on Monday after Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft lowered their price target on the stock from $110.00 to $109.00. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft currently has a hold rating on the stock. Kimberly-Clark traded as low as $96.20 and last traded at $96.4850, with a volume of 2795642 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at $98.66.

Several other research firms have also recently issued reports on KMB. Weiss Ratings reissued a “hold (c-)” rating on shares of Kimberly-Clark in a research report on Friday. TD Cowen reduced their target price on shares of Kimberly-Clark from $112.00 to $105.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, January 8th. UBS Group lifted their price target on shares of Kimberly-Clark from $107.00 to $110.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 28th. Piper Sandler lowered their price target on Kimberly-Clark from $133.00 to $114.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Friday, March 13th. Finally, Zacks Research cut Kimberly-Clark from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 3rd. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, eleven have issued a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $115.85.

Insider Transactions at Kimberly-Clark

In other Kimberly-Clark news, VP Andrew Scribner sold 3,049 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $104.29, for a total transaction of $317,980.21. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. 0.64% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Kimberly-Clark

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. raised its stake in Kimberly-Clark by 186.9% in the third quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 43,492 shares of the company’s stock valued at $5,408,000 after buying an additional 28,335 shares during the last quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB grew its stake in shares of Kimberly-Clark by 2.5% during the third quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 2,439,692 shares of the company’s stock worth $301,448,000 after acquiring an additional 58,978 shares during the last quarter. Synergy Asset Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of Kimberly-Clark by 100.0% during the third quarter. Synergy Asset Management LLC now owns 38,260 shares of the company’s stock valued at $4,932,000 after acquiring an additional 19,130 shares in the last quarter. Hudson Bay Capital Management LP increased its holdings in shares of Kimberly-Clark by 5,751.6% during the second quarter. Hudson Bay Capital Management LP now owns 94,211 shares of the company’s stock valued at $12,146,000 after acquiring an additional 92,601 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Citigroup Inc. raised its position in shares of Kimberly-Clark by 3.7% in the 3rd quarter. Citigroup Inc. now owns 399,630 shares of the company’s stock valued at $49,690,000 after purchasing an additional 14,386 shares during the last quarter. 76.29% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Kimberly-Clark Stock Down 2.3%

The company’s 50-day moving average is $103.37 and its 200 day moving average is $107.62. The stock has a market capitalization of $31.98 billion, a PE ratio of 15.87, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.51 and a beta of 0.24. The company has a current ratio of 0.75, a quick ratio of 0.54 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.97.

Kimberly-Clark (NASDAQ:KMB) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, January 27th. The company reported $1.86 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.81 by $0.05. The company had revenue of $4.08 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.11 billion. Kimberly-Clark had a net margin of 11.73% and a return on equity of 170.48%. Kimberly-Clark’s revenue was down .6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $1.50 EPS. As a group, analysts anticipate that Kimberly-Clark Corporation will post 7.5 EPS for the current year.

Kimberly-Clark Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, April 2nd. Investors of record on Friday, March 6th will be given a $1.28 dividend. This represents a $5.12 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 5.3%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 6th. This is a positive change from Kimberly-Clark’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.26. Kimberly-Clark’s payout ratio is currently 84.35%.

Kimberly-Clark Company Profile

Kimberly-Clark Corporation is a U.S.-based multinational manufacturer of personal care and consumer tissue products. The company develops, produces and markets a range of consumer brands and professional products, including facial and bathroom tissues, disposable diapers and training pants, feminine care, incontinence products and workplace hygiene solutions. Known for consumer-facing names such as Kleenex, Huggies, Kotex, Cottonelle and Scott, as well as professional offerings under Kimberly-Clark Professional and KleenGuard, the company supplies goods to retail, healthcare and institutional customers.

Founded in 1872 in Neenah, Wisconsin, Kimberly-Clark has expanded from its 19th-century paper-making roots into a global household and workplace products company.