Johnson Investment Counsel Inc. Trims Stock Holdings in Kimberly-Clark Co. (NYSE:KMB)

Johnson Investment Counsel Inc. reduced its stake in Kimberly-Clark Co. (NYSE:KMB) by 8.0% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 12,371 shares of the company’s stock after selling 1,073 shares during the period. Johnson Investment Counsel Inc.’s holdings in Kimberly-Clark were worth $1,621,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Migdal Insurance & Financial Holdings Ltd. acquired a new position in Kimberly-Clark in the 4th quarter valued at about $25,000. Marshall Investment Management LLC acquired a new position in Kimberly-Clark in the 4th quarter valued at about $25,000. Darwin Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in Kimberly-Clark in the 3rd quarter valued at about $29,000. Golden State Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in Kimberly-Clark in the 4th quarter valued at about $32,000. Finally, Strategic Financial Concepts LLC acquired a new position in Kimberly-Clark in the 4th quarter valued at about $33,000. 76.29% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Kimberly-Clark Price Performance

KMB stock opened at $144.02 on Wednesday. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $132.96 and a 200 day moving average price of $136.48. The stock has a market cap of $47.77 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.08, a PEG ratio of 4.46 and a beta of 0.36. Kimberly-Clark Co. has a fifty-two week low of $123.02 and a fifty-two week high of $150.45. The company has a quick ratio of 0.54, a current ratio of 0.80 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 7.05.

Kimberly-Clark (NYSE:KMB) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, January 28th. The company reported $1.50 earnings per share for the quarter, hitting the consensus estimate of $1.50. Kimberly-Clark had a return on equity of 201.43% and a net margin of 12.69%. Equities research analysts anticipate that Kimberly-Clark Co. will post 7.5 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Kimberly-Clark Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, April 2nd. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 7th will be paid a $1.26 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 7th. This represents a $5.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.50%. This is a boost from Kimberly-Clark’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.22. Kimberly-Clark’s payout ratio is currently 66.75%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Kimberly-Clark

In other Kimberly-Clark news, VP Andrew Drexler sold 2,500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $140.00, for a total value of $350,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now owns 2,553 shares in the company, valued at approximately $357,420. The trade was a 49.48 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. 0.62% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

KMB has been the subject of several research reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their target price on Kimberly-Clark from $140.00 to $124.00 and set an “underweight” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, January 16th. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their target price on Kimberly-Clark from $140.00 to $130.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, January 7th. UBS Group boosted their price objective on Kimberly-Clark from $132.00 to $134.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 29th. Citigroup lowered their price objective on Kimberly-Clark from $125.00 to $118.00 and set a “sell” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, January 15th. Finally, TD Cowen downgraded Kimberly-Clark from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and set a $145.00 price objective for the company. in a research report on Wednesday, January 8th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have issued a hold rating and six have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $143.64.

Kimberly-Clark Company 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.