Private Advisor Group LLC Cuts Stake in Kimberly-Clark Co. (NYSE:KMB)

Private Advisor Group LLC trimmed its holdings in shares of Kimberly-Clark Co. (NYSE:KMB) by 5.4% during the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 36,247 shares of the company’s stock after selling 2,064 shares during the period. Private Advisor Group LLC’s holdings in Kimberly-Clark were worth $5,009,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in KMB. Rise Advisors LLC boosted its stake in shares of Kimberly-Clark by 926.3% during the first quarter. Rise Advisors LLC now owns 195 shares of the company’s stock valued at $25,000 after purchasing an additional 176 shares in the last quarter. Crewe Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Kimberly-Clark during the first quarter worth $27,000. New Millennium Group LLC bought a new stake in Kimberly-Clark during the 2nd quarter valued at $28,000. Fortitude Family Office LLC increased its holdings in shares of Kimberly-Clark by 333.3% in the 2nd quarter. Fortitude Family Office LLC now owns 325 shares of the company’s stock valued at $45,000 after acquiring an additional 250 shares during the period. Finally, Thurston Springer Miller Herd & Titak Inc. bought a new position in shares of Kimberly-Clark in the 2nd quarter worth $49,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 76.29% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts have issued reports on the company. Barclays cut their target price on Kimberly-Clark from $136.00 to $135.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, July 19th. BNP Paribas initiated coverage on shares of Kimberly-Clark in a research note on Monday, June 24th. They set a “neutral” rating and a $146.00 price objective for the company. StockNews.com downgraded shares of Kimberly-Clark from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 30th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price target on shares of Kimberly-Clark from $123.00 to $135.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a report on Monday, July 22nd. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price objective on Kimberly-Clark from $138.00 to $134.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, July 24th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have issued a hold rating and seven have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $145.67.

Insider Transactions at Kimberly-Clark

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

Kimberly-Clark Trading Down 0.6 %

Kimberly-Clark stock opened at $146.25 on Wednesday. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $141.86 and a 200 day moving average price of $135.07. The company has a market capitalization of $49.26 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 26.88, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.12 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.

Kimberly-Clark (NYSE:KMB) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, July 23rd. The company reported $1.96 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.71 by $0.25. Kimberly-Clark had a net margin of 11.28% and a return on equity of 223.55%. The business had revenue of $5.03 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.10 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $1.65 EPS. The business’s revenue for the quarter was down 2.0% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Kimberly-Clark Co. will post 7.25 EPS for the current year.

Kimberly-Clark Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, October 2nd. Stockholders 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 3.34%. Kimberly-Clark’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 89.71%.

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.