Kimberly-Clark Co. (NYSE:KMB) Shares Sold by Asset Dedication LLC

Asset Dedication LLC reduced its stake in shares of Kimberly-Clark Co. (NYSE:KMB) by 33.0% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 836 shares of the company’s stock after selling 411 shares during the quarter. Asset Dedication LLC’s holdings in Kimberly-Clark were worth $110,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the stock. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. boosted its holdings in Kimberly-Clark by 0.5% during the second quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. now owns 47,574 shares of the company’s stock worth $6,575,000 after buying an additional 240 shares in the last quarter. Advisory Alpha LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Kimberly-Clark during the 2nd quarter worth about $248,000. Clearbridge Investments LLC grew its position in shares of Kimberly-Clark by 53.9% during the 2nd quarter. Clearbridge Investments LLC now owns 63,561 shares of the company’s stock valued at $8,784,000 after acquiring an additional 22,272 shares during the period. Strategic Investment Solutions Inc. IL purchased a new position in shares of Kimberly-Clark in the 2nd quarter valued at about $64,000. Finally, Sanctuary Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Kimberly-Clark in the 2nd quarter worth about $4,513,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 76.29% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, VP Andrew Drexler sold 3,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Friday, November 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $139.01, for a total value of $417,030.00. Following the transaction, the vice president now owns 5,053 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $702,417.53. This represents a 37.25 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. 0.62% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Kimberly-Clark Stock Performance

NYSE KMB opened at $130.78 on Friday. Kimberly-Clark Co. has a fifty-two week low of $117.67 and a fifty-two week high of $149.30. The firm has a market capitalization of $43.61 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.96, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.53 and a beta of 0.41. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $131.50 and its two-hundred day moving average is $137.36. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 4.77, a quick ratio of 0.55 and a current ratio of 0.83.

Kimberly-Clark (NYSE:KMB) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, January 28th. The company reported $1.50 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, meeting analysts’ consensus estimates 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 earnings per share for the current year.

Kimberly-Clark Increases Dividend

The company 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 dividend of $1.26 per share. This represents a $5.04 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.85%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 7th. This is a positive change from Kimberly-Clark’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.22. Kimberly-Clark’s payout ratio is presently 63.29%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages have commented on KMB. StockNews.com lowered Kimberly-Clark from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday. Royal Bank of Canada reissued an “outperform” rating and issued a $165.00 price target on shares of Kimberly-Clark in a report on Friday, January 24th. Citigroup dropped their target price on shares of Kimberly-Clark from $125.00 to $118.00 and set a “sell” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, January 15th. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price target on shares of 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. Finally, UBS Group lifted their price objective on Kimberly-Clark from $132.00 to $134.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday. 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 company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Kimberly-Clark presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $143.64.

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.