TIAA Trust National Association Trims Holdings in Kimberly-Clark Co. (NYSE:KMB)

TIAA Trust National Association cut its position in shares of Kimberly-Clark Co. (NYSE:KMB) by 2.7% in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 23,871 shares of the company’s stock after selling 667 shares during the quarter. TIAA Trust National Association’s holdings in Kimberly-Clark were worth $3,299,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

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

Kimberly-Clark Trading Up 0.7 %

NYSE:KMB opened at $148.35 on Thursday. The stock has a market cap of $49.95 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 27.27, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.07 and a beta of 0.39. Kimberly-Clark Co. has a one year low of $116.32 and a one year high of $148.87. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 5.59, a quick ratio of 0.58 and a current ratio of 0.85. The business’s 50-day simple moving average is $141.16 and its 200 day simple moving average is $134.21.

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

Kimberly-Clark Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, October 2nd. Investors of record on Friday, September 6th will be paid a dividend of $1.22 per share. This represents a $4.88 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.29%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, September 6th. Kimberly-Clark’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 89.71%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research firms have recently commented on KMB. Barclays dropped their price objective on Kimberly-Clark from $136.00 to $135.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Friday, July 19th. Royal Bank of Canada restated an “outperform” rating and set a $165.00 price target on shares of Kimberly-Clark in a research note on Wednesday, July 24th. BNP Paribas began coverage on Kimberly-Clark in a research note on Monday, June 24th. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $146.00 price objective on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their target price on shares of Kimberly-Clark from $138.00 to $134.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, July 24th. Finally, StockNews.com cut shares of Kimberly-Clark from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 30th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have assigned a hold rating and seven have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $145.67.

Insiders Place Their Bets

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

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.