Kimberly-Clark (NYSE:KMB) Releases Earnings Results, Beats Expectations By $0.40 EPS

Kimberly-Clark (NYSE:KMB) released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday. The company reported $2.01 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.61 by $0.40, Briefing.com reports. The company had revenue of $5.15 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.08 billion. Kimberly-Clark had a return on equity of 260.47% and a net margin of 8.63%. Kimberly-Clark’s revenue was down .9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $1.67 earnings per share.

Kimberly-Clark Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE KMB traded up $1.15 during midday trading on Wednesday, hitting $137.19. 1,278,983 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,192,435. The company has a quick ratio of 0.54, a current ratio of 0.82 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 6.94. Kimberly-Clark has a 12 month low of $116.32 and a 12 month high of $147.87. The company’s 50 day moving average price is $124.78 and its 200 day moving average price is $122.55. The firm has a market capitalization of $46.22 billion, a PE ratio of 26.38, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.83 and a beta of 0.40.

Analyst Ratings Changes

KMB has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. The Goldman Sachs Group raised their price target on Kimberly-Clark from $135.00 to $152.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday. UBS Group raised their price target on Kimberly-Clark from $135.00 to $138.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday. HSBC raised their price target on Kimberly-Clark from $134.00 to $146.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, March 28th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price target on Kimberly-Clark from $115.00 to $123.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company lifted their target price on Kimberly-Clark from $131.00 to $136.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Wednesday. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have assigned a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $133.71.

Insider Transactions at Kimberly-Clark

In other Kimberly-Clark news, Director Mark T. Smucker bought 827 shares of Kimberly-Clark stock in a transaction dated Monday, January 29th. The stock was bought at an average cost of $120.98 per share, for a total transaction of $100,050.46. Following the purchase, the director now owns 827 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $100,050.46. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. In other news, 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 cost of $120.98 per share, for a total transaction of $100,050.46. Following the purchase, the director now directly owns 827 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $100,050.46. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, 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 completion of the sale, the insider now owns 17,229 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,084,709. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.62% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

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.