Renaissance Technologies LLC Boosts Position in Kimberly-Clark Co. (NYSE:KMB)

Renaissance Technologies LLC lifted its position in Kimberly-Clark Co. (NYSE:KMB) by 3.7% during the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 440,592 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 15,700 shares during the quarter. Renaissance Technologies LLC owned approximately 0.13% of Kimberly-Clark worth $60,890,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other large investors also recently modified their holdings of KMB. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. lifted its stake in Kimberly-Clark by 18.2% in the 1st quarter. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 454,104 shares of the company’s stock worth $58,738,000 after purchasing an additional 69,794 shares in the last quarter. Virtu Financial LLC grew its position in Kimberly-Clark by 506.8% during the fourth quarter. Virtu Financial LLC now owns 12,955 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,574,000 after buying an additional 10,820 shares in the last quarter. Nixon Peabody Trust Co. bought a new position in Kimberly-Clark in the 4th quarter worth about $1,081,000. Focus Financial Network Inc. ADV purchased a new stake in shares of Kimberly-Clark in the 4th quarter valued at about $1,094,000. Finally, Cantor Fitzgerald Investment Advisors L.P. purchased a new stake in shares of Kimberly-Clark in the 4th quarter valued at about $11,994,000. 76.29% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts recently weighed in on KMB shares. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upped their price objective on shares of Kimberly-Clark from $139.00 to $142.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 24th. Bank of America upgraded shares of Kimberly-Clark from an “underperform” rating to a “buy” rating and raised their price objective for the company from $115.00 to $160.00 in a research report on Thursday, June 13th. TD Cowen began coverage on shares of Kimberly-Clark in a research report on Tuesday, July 23rd. They issued a “buy” rating and a $161.00 target price for the company. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their target price on Kimberly-Clark from $138.00 to $134.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, July 24th. Finally, Barclays dropped their price target on Kimberly-Clark from $136.00 to $135.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, July 19th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have issued a hold rating and seven have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $145.67.

Kimberly-Clark Trading Down 1.8 %

NYSE:KMB opened at $141.66 on Wednesday. The firm has a market capitalization of $47.70 billion, a P/E ratio of 26.04, a P/E/G ratio of 3.04 and a beta of 0.39. Kimberly-Clark Co. has a 52 week low of $116.32 and a 52 week high of $149.30. The company has a quick ratio of 0.58, a current ratio of 0.85 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 5.59. The company has a fifty day moving average of $142.32 and a 200 day moving average of $135.83.

Kimberly-Clark (NYSE:KMB) last posted its 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 during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.10 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $1.65 earnings per share. Kimberly-Clark’s revenue for the quarter was down 2.0% on a year-over-year basis. On average, research analysts predict that Kimberly-Clark Co. will post 7.25 earnings per share for the current year.

Kimberly-Clark Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, October 2nd. Stockholders of record on Friday, September 6th will be given a $1.22 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, September 6th. This represents a $4.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.44%. Kimberly-Clark’s dividend payout ratio is currently 89.71%.

Insider Activity

In related news, insider Jeffrey P. Melucci sold 37,699 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on 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 completion of the sale, the insider now owns 19,935 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,819,207.70. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. In related news, insider Gonzalo Uribe sold 1,780 shares of the 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 completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 7,377 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,038,976.68. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, insider Jeffrey P. Melucci sold 37,699 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated 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 owns 19,935 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,819,207.70. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 0.62% of the company’s stock.

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.