Kimberly-Clark Co. (NYSE:KMB) Stake Lessened by Xponance Inc.

Xponance Inc. reduced its position in shares of Kimberly-Clark Co. (NYSE:KMB) by 21.9% during the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 58,526 shares of the company’s stock after selling 16,433 shares during the period. Xponance Inc.’s holdings in Kimberly-Clark were worth $8,088,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD boosted its position in shares of Kimberly-Clark by 19.1% in the first quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 5,893,146 shares of the company’s stock valued at $762,279,000 after acquiring an additional 944,920 shares during the period. Capital World Investors boosted its holdings in shares of Kimberly-Clark by 17.8% in the 1st quarter. Capital World Investors now owns 2,269,492 shares of the company’s stock worth $293,559,000 after acquiring an additional 342,790 shares in the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP grew its position in Kimberly-Clark by 22.4% during the 2nd quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 1,934,655 shares of the company’s stock worth $267,383,000 after acquiring an additional 354,501 shares during the last quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB increased its holdings in Kimberly-Clark by 2.9% during the 1st quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 1,720,051 shares of the company’s stock valued at $222,093,000 after purchasing an additional 48,103 shares in the last quarter. Finally, ProShare Advisors LLC raised its position in Kimberly-Clark by 9.8% in the 1st quarter. ProShare Advisors LLC now owns 1,487,835 shares of the company’s stock valued at $192,451,000 after purchasing an additional 132,576 shares during the last quarter. 76.29% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Kimberly-Clark Stock Up 0.3 %

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

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

Kimberly-Clark Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, October 2nd. Stockholders of record on Friday, September 6th will be issued a dividend of $1.22 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, September 6th. This represents a $4.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.46%. Kimberly-Clark’s dividend payout ratio is currently 89.71%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Kimberly-Clark

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

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

KMB has been the subject of a number of research reports. Argus upgraded Kimberly-Clark to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, July 26th. BNP Paribas began coverage on Kimberly-Clark in a report on Monday, June 24th. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $146.00 price target for the company. StockNews.com cut Kimberly-Clark from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 30th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft raised their price objective on Kimberly-Clark from $139.00 to $142.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 24th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price objective on Kimberly-Clark from $123.00 to $135.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a research note on Monday, July 22nd. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have assigned a hold rating and seven have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $145.67.

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.