Loring Wolcott & Coolidge Fiduciary Advisors LLP MA Cuts Stake in Kimberly-Clark Co. (NYSE:KMB)

Loring Wolcott & Coolidge Fiduciary Advisors LLP MA decreased its holdings in Kimberly-Clark Co. (NYSE:KMB) by 8.8% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 3,362 shares of the company’s stock after selling 325 shares during the period. Loring Wolcott & Coolidge Fiduciary Advisors LLP MA’s holdings in Kimberly-Clark were worth $407,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the business. OFI Invest Asset Management purchased a new stake in Kimberly-Clark during the 3rd quarter valued at $25,000. Cranbrook Wealth Management LLC boosted its position in Kimberly-Clark by 90.9% during the 4th quarter. Cranbrook Wealth Management LLC now owns 210 shares of the company’s stock valued at $26,000 after buying an additional 100 shares during the period. Centerpoint Advisors LLC boosted its position in Kimberly-Clark by 175.0% during the 3rd quarter. Centerpoint Advisors LLC now owns 275 shares of the company’s stock valued at $33,000 after buying an additional 175 shares during the period. Wetzel Investment Advisors Inc. purchased a new stake in Kimberly-Clark during the 4th quarter valued at $35,000. Finally, Legacy Financial Group LLC purchased a new stake in Kimberly-Clark during the 3rd quarter valued at $37,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 76.29% of the company’s stock.

Kimberly-Clark Stock Performance

Shares of KMB traded up $6.93 on Tuesday, reaching $135.86. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 3,548,836 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,175,765. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 6.94, a current ratio of 0.82 and a quick ratio of 0.54. The stock has a market capitalization of $45.77 billion, a P/E ratio of 26.01, a PEG ratio of 3.77 and a beta of 0.40. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $124.44 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $122.43. Kimberly-Clark Co. has a 12-month low of $116.32 and a 12-month high of $147.87.

Kimberly-Clark (NYSE:KMB) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, January 24th. The company reported $1.51 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.53 by ($0.02). Kimberly-Clark had a net margin of 8.63% and a return on equity of 260.47%. The firm had revenue of $5 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.99 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $1.54 EPS. Kimberly-Clark’s revenue for the quarter was up .7% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts forecast that Kimberly-Clark Co. will post 6.84 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Kimberly-Clark Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, April 2nd. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 8th were given a dividend of $1.22 per share. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, March 7th. This represents a $4.88 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.59%. This is a boost from Kimberly-Clark’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.18. Kimberly-Clark’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 93.85%.

Insider Activity

In other news, insider Tristram Wilkinson sold 3,720 shares of Kimberly-Clark stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, January 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $121.00, for a total transaction of $450,120.00. Following the sale, the insider now owns 17,229 shares in the company, valued at $2,084,709. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this link. In related news, insider Tristram Wilkinson sold 3,720 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, January 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $121.00, for a total value of $450,120.00. Following the sale, the insider now owns 17,229 shares in the company, valued at $2,084,709. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, Director Mark T. Smucker purchased 827 shares of Kimberly-Clark stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, January 29th. The stock was acquired at an average price of $120.98 per share, for a total transaction of $100,050.46. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 827 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $100,050.46. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Company insiders own 0.62% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

KMB has been the subject of several research reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price target on shares of Kimberly-Clark from $119.00 to $125.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 18th. The Goldman Sachs Group initiated coverage on shares of Kimberly-Clark in a research note on Friday, March 1st. They issued a “buy” rating and a $135.00 price target for the company. Evercore ISI upgraded shares of Kimberly-Clark from an “in-line” rating to an “outperform” rating and increased their price target for the stock from $133.00 to $150.00 in a research note on Thursday, March 28th. Royal Bank of Canada reiterated a “sector perform” rating and issued a $123.00 price target on shares of Kimberly-Clark in a research note on Thursday, March 28th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft increased their price target on shares of Kimberly-Clark from $127.00 to $132.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, March 28th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have given a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $131.85.

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.