Kimberly-Clark Co. (NYSE:KMB) Shares Sold by Epoch Investment Partners Inc.

Epoch Investment Partners Inc. trimmed its position in shares of Kimberly-Clark Co. (NYSE:KMB) by 9.5% in the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 10,958 shares of the company’s stock after selling 1,145 shares during the quarter. Epoch Investment Partners Inc.’s holdings in Kimberly-Clark were worth $1,514,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Assetmark Inc. boosted its position in Kimberly-Clark by 17.0% during the fourth quarter. Assetmark Inc. now owns 11,297 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,373,000 after acquiring an additional 1,640 shares during the last quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC grew its position in shares of Kimberly-Clark by 6.2% in the fourth quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC now owns 6,456 shares of the company’s stock valued at $785,000 after purchasing an additional 378 shares in the last quarter. Mitchell Sinkler & Starr PA increased its holdings in shares of Kimberly-Clark by 100.6% in the fourth quarter. Mitchell Sinkler & Starr PA now owns 20,541 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,496,000 after purchasing an additional 10,303 shares during the last quarter. Bell & Brown Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Kimberly-Clark during the fourth quarter worth approximately $1,647,000. Finally, Pine Valley Investments Ltd Liability Co boosted its stake in Kimberly-Clark by 12.4% during the fourth quarter. Pine Valley Investments Ltd Liability Co now owns 31,199 shares of the company’s stock worth $3,800,000 after buying an additional 3,431 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 76.29% of the company’s stock.

Kimberly-Clark Stock Up 0.3 %

Shares of KMB opened at $141.21 on Tuesday. The company’s 50-day simple moving average is $142.30 and its 200-day simple moving average is $136.29. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 5.59, a quick ratio of 0.58 and a current ratio of 0.85. Kimberly-Clark Co. has a 1 year low of $116.32 and a 1 year high of $149.30. The stock has a market capitalization of $47.55 billion, a PE ratio of 25.96, a P/E/G ratio of 3.04 and a beta of 0.39.

Kimberly-Clark (NYSE:KMB) last issued its quarterly earnings results 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 company had revenue of $5.03 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $5.10 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $1.65 EPS. The firm’s revenue was down 2.0% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts forecast that Kimberly-Clark Co. will post 7.25 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Kimberly-Clark Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, October 2nd. Investors 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 yield of 3.46%. Kimberly-Clark’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 89.71%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, insider Jeffrey P. Melucci sold 37,699 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, July 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $141.42, for a total value of $5,331,392.58. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 19,935 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,819,207.70. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. In other news, insider Gonzalo Uribe sold 1,780 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, July 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $140.84, for a total value of $250,695.20. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 7,377 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,038,976.68. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. 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 value of $5,331,392.58. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 19,935 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,819,207.70. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.62% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts have recently commented on the company. TD Cowen assumed coverage on Kimberly-Clark in a report on Tuesday, July 23rd. They set a “buy” rating and a $161.00 price target on the stock. BNP Paribas assumed coverage on shares of Kimberly-Clark in a report on Monday, June 24th. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $146.00 target price on the stock. Barclays cut their price target on shares of Kimberly-Clark from $136.00 to $135.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Friday, July 19th. Argus upgraded Kimberly-Clark to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, July 26th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft raised their target price on Kimberly-Clark from $139.00 to $142.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 24th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have given a hold rating and seven have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $145.67.

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.