Kimberly-Clark Corporation $KMB Shares Sold by HighTower Advisors LLC

HighTower Advisors LLC lessened its position in shares of Kimberly-Clark Corporation (NASDAQ:KMB) by 32.0% in the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The institutional investor owned 134,428 shares of the company’s stock after selling 63,230 shares during the period. HighTower Advisors LLC’s holdings in Kimberly-Clark were worth $13,562,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the business. Cloud Capital Management LLC purchased a new position in Kimberly-Clark during the 3rd quarter valued at about $25,000. Darwin Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Kimberly-Clark in the second quarter valued at about $27,000. Eagle Bay Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Kimberly-Clark in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Newbridge Financial Services Group Inc. increased its stake in shares of Kimberly-Clark by 96.6% during the 4th quarter. Newbridge Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 285 shares of the company’s stock worth $29,000 after purchasing an additional 140 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Entrust Financial LLC acquired a new position in shares of Kimberly-Clark during the 4th quarter worth approximately $32,000. 76.29% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Activity at Kimberly-Clark

In other Kimberly-Clark news, VP Andrew Scribner sold 4,095 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, May 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $98.00, for a total transaction of $401,310.00. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, insider Katy Chen sold 1,596 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, May 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $95.34, for a total transaction of $152,162.64. Following the sale, the insider directly owned 8,362 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $797,233.08. This represents a 16.03% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. Insiders sold 7,096 shares of company stock worth $689,687 over the last three months. Corporate insiders own 0.75% of the company’s stock.

Kimberly-Clark Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:KMB opened at $99.14 on Monday. The company has a market cap of $32.91 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.56, a P/E/G ratio of 4.45 and a beta of 0.29. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $97.70 and a 200-day simple moving average of $101.38. Kimberly-Clark Corporation has a 52 week low of $92.42 and a 52 week high of $144.30. The company has a quick ratio of 0.55, a current ratio of 0.77 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.38.

Kimberly-Clark (NASDAQ:KMB) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, April 28th. The company reported $1.97 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.93 by $0.04. The firm had revenue of $4.16 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.09 billion. Kimberly-Clark had a return on equity of 152.79% and a net margin of 12.80%.The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 2.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $1.93 earnings per share. Equities research analysts forecast that Kimberly-Clark Corporation will post 7.48 EPS for the current year.

Kimberly-Clark Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, July 2nd. Investors of record on Friday, June 5th will be given a $1.28 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, June 5th. This represents a $5.12 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 5.2%. Kimberly-Clark’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 80.38%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts have weighed in on the company. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price target on Kimberly-Clark from $110.00 to $100.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, April 8th. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “hold (c-)” rating on shares of Kimberly-Clark in a research note on Friday, March 27th. UBS Group lifted their price objective on Kimberly-Clark from $105.00 to $106.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 29th. Zacks Research lowered shares of Kimberly-Clark from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, March 3rd. Finally, Barclays decreased their price target on shares of Kimberly-Clark from $105.00 to $99.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, April 14th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, eleven have issued a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $114.93.

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.