Kimberly-Clark Co. (NYSE:KMB) Shares Sold by New England Research & Management Inc.

New England Research & Management Inc. lessened its stake in Kimberly-Clark Co. (NYSE:KMB) by 11.0% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 16,339 shares of the company’s stock after selling 2,015 shares during the period. Kimberly-Clark accounts for approximately 1.1% of New England Research & Management Inc.’s portfolio, making the stock its 25th largest position. New England Research & Management Inc.’s holdings in Kimberly-Clark were worth $2,141,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Forsta AP Fonden boosted its stake in Kimberly-Clark by 0.6% in the fourth quarter. Forsta AP Fonden now owns 124,700 shares of the company’s stock valued at $16,341,000 after acquiring an additional 800 shares in the last quarter. R Squared Ltd acquired a new stake in shares of Kimberly-Clark during the fourth quarter worth about $493,000. Williams & Novak LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Kimberly-Clark during the fourth quarter worth about $240,000. YHB Investment Advisors Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Kimberly-Clark by 3.4% during the fourth quarter. YHB Investment Advisors Inc. now owns 2,519 shares of the company’s stock worth $330,000 after buying an additional 83 shares during the period. Finally, IRON Financial LLC boosted its stake in shares of Kimberly-Clark by 2.7% during the fourth quarter. IRON Financial LLC now owns 5,788 shares of the company’s stock worth $758,000 after buying an additional 151 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 76.29% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity

In related news, VP Andrew Drexler sold 3,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, November 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $139.01, for a total transaction of $417,030.00. Following the sale, the vice president now owns 5,053 shares in the company, valued at approximately $702,417.53. This trade represents a 37.25 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Company insiders own 0.62% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

KMB has been the subject of several recent research reports. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their target price on shares of Kimberly-Clark from $140.00 to $130.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, January 7th. Piper Sandler reiterated an “overweight” rating and set a $158.00 target price (down previously from $161.00) on shares of Kimberly-Clark in a research note on Wednesday. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price target on shares of Kimberly-Clark from $140.00 to $124.00 and set an “underweight” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, January 16th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft increased their price target on shares of Kimberly-Clark from $146.00 to $147.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, October 8th. Finally, Barclays cut their price target on shares of Kimberly-Clark from $144.00 to $132.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Friday, January 17th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have issued a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $143.64.

Kimberly-Clark Trading Up 0.2 %

Shares of Kimberly-Clark stock opened at $129.67 on Thursday. The company has a 50-day moving average of $131.63 and a two-hundred day moving average of $137.41. The stock has a market cap of $43.24 billion, a PE ratio of 16.82, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.53 and a beta of 0.41. Kimberly-Clark Co. has a 12-month low of $117.67 and a 12-month high of $149.30. The company has a current ratio of 0.83, a quick ratio of 0.55 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 4.77.

Kimberly-Clark (NYSE:KMB) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, January 28th. The company reported $1.50 EPS for the quarter, meeting the consensus estimate of $1.50. Kimberly-Clark had a net margin of 12.97% and a return on equity of 198.59%. On average, research analysts anticipate that Kimberly-Clark Co. will post 7.32 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Kimberly-Clark Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, April 2nd. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 7th will be given a $1.26 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 7th. This is a positive change from Kimberly-Clark’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.22. This represents a $5.04 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.89%. Kimberly-Clark’s dividend payout ratio is currently 63.29%.

Kimberly-Clark 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.