State of New Jersey Common Pension Fund D Increases Position in Kimberly-Clark Corporation $KMB

State of New Jersey Common Pension Fund D grew its holdings in shares of Kimberly-Clark Corporation (NASDAQ:KMB) by 4.8% during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 112,839 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 5,183 shares during the quarter. State of New Jersey Common Pension Fund D’s holdings in Kimberly-Clark were worth $14,030,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. grew its stake in Kimberly-Clark by 186.9% in the third quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 43,492 shares of the company’s stock valued at $5,408,000 after purchasing an additional 28,335 shares during the last quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB grew its position in shares of Kimberly-Clark by 2.5% in the 3rd quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 2,439,692 shares of the company’s stock worth $301,448,000 after buying an additional 58,978 shares during the last quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. grew its position in shares of Kimberly-Clark by 3.4% in the 2nd quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 591,145 shares of the company’s stock worth $76,234,000 after buying an additional 19,298 shares during the last quarter. Synergy Asset Management LLC raised its stake in shares of Kimberly-Clark by 100.0% during the 3rd quarter. Synergy Asset Management LLC now owns 38,260 shares of the company’s stock worth $4,932,000 after acquiring an additional 19,130 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Hudson Bay Capital Management LP lifted its position in Kimberly-Clark by 5,751.6% during the second quarter. Hudson Bay Capital Management LP now owns 94,211 shares of the company’s stock valued at $12,146,000 after acquiring an additional 92,601 shares during the last quarter. 76.29% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Kimberly-Clark Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:KMB opened at $109.41 on Tuesday. Kimberly-Clark Corporation has a twelve month low of $96.26 and a twelve month high of $150.45. The company has a current ratio of 0.75, a quick ratio of 0.54 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.97. The company has a market cap of $36.32 billion, a PE ratio of 18.02, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.30 and a beta of 0.26. The company’s 50 day moving average is $101.60 and its 200 day moving average is $113.59.

Kimberly-Clark (NASDAQ:KMB) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, January 27th. The company reported $1.86 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.81 by $0.05. Kimberly-Clark had a net margin of 11.73% and a return on equity of 170.48%. The business had revenue of $4.08 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.11 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $1.50 EPS. The business’s revenue for the quarter was down .6% on a year-over-year basis. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that Kimberly-Clark Corporation will post 7.5 EPS for the current year.

Kimberly-Clark Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, April 2nd. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 6th will be paid a dividend of $1.28 per share. This represents a $5.12 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.7%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 6th. This is an increase from Kimberly-Clark’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.26. Kimberly-Clark’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 83.03%.

Insider Activity

In other news, VP Andrew Scribner sold 3,049 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $104.29, for a total value of $317,980.21. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. 0.64% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

KMB has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. Royal Bank Of Canada reaffirmed an “overweight” rating and set a $162.00 price target on shares of Kimberly-Clark in a research report on Tuesday, October 28th. Morgan Stanley reduced their target price on Kimberly-Clark from $144.00 to $125.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, November 4th. TD Cowen lowered their price target on Kimberly-Clark from $112.00 to $105.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, January 8th. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price target on Kimberly-Clark from $110.00 to $105.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, January 5th. Finally, Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “hold (c-)” rating on shares of Kimberly-Clark in a research report on Monday, December 29th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, three have issued a Buy rating, nine have issued a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $118.58.

About Kimberly-Clark

Kimberly-Clark Corporation is a U.S.-based multinational manufacturer of personal care and consumer tissue products. The company develops, produces and markets a range of consumer brands and professional products, including facial and bathroom tissues, disposable diapers and training pants, feminine care, incontinence products and workplace hygiene solutions. Known for consumer-facing names such as Kleenex, Huggies, Kotex, Cottonelle and Scott, as well as professional offerings under Kimberly-Clark Professional and KleenGuard, the company supplies goods to retail, healthcare and institutional customers.

Founded in 1872 in Neenah, Wisconsin, Kimberly-Clark has expanded from its 19th-century paper-making roots into a global household and workplace products company.