Kentucky Retirement Systems Insurance Trust Fund Has $1.44 Million Stock Position in Kimberly-Clark Co. (NYSE:KMB)

Kentucky Retirement Systems Insurance Trust Fund trimmed its position in Kimberly-Clark Co. (NYSE:KMB) by 7.7% in the first quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 11,117 shares of the company’s stock after selling 922 shares during the period. Kentucky Retirement Systems Insurance Trust Fund’s holdings in Kimberly-Clark were worth $1,438,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the company. Capital Investment Counsel Inc grew its holdings in shares of Kimberly-Clark by 0.8% during the first quarter. Capital Investment Counsel Inc now owns 10,019 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,296,000 after purchasing an additional 75 shares during the last quarter. Connecticut Wealth Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Kimberly-Clark by 4.6% during the first quarter. Connecticut Wealth Management LLC now owns 1,755 shares of the company’s stock worth $227,000 after purchasing an additional 77 shares during the period. Comprehensive Financial Consultants Institutional Inc. grew its stake in shares of Kimberly-Clark by 1.6% in the first quarter. Comprehensive Financial Consultants Institutional Inc. now owns 5,093 shares of the company’s stock worth $659,000 after purchasing an additional 81 shares during the last quarter. Essex Financial Services Inc. increased its holdings in Kimberly-Clark by 2.1% in the first quarter. Essex Financial Services Inc. now owns 3,923 shares of the company’s stock valued at $507,000 after purchasing an additional 82 shares during the period. Finally, First National Bank of Mount Dora Trust Investment Services raised its position in Kimberly-Clark by 1.7% during the 1st quarter. First National Bank of Mount Dora Trust Investment Services now owns 4,817 shares of the company’s stock worth $623,000 after purchasing an additional 82 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 76.29% of the company’s stock.

Kimberly-Clark Stock Up 0.5 %

Shares of NYSE:KMB traded up $0.74 during trading on Friday, reaching $141.81. 2,064,513 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,201,267. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $137.81 and a two-hundred day moving average of $130.23. Kimberly-Clark Co. has a 1-year low of $116.32 and a 1-year high of $145.62. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 5.59, a current ratio of 0.85 and a quick ratio of 0.54. The firm has a market cap of $47.76 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 26.07, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.03 and a beta of 0.37.

Kimberly-Clark (NYSE:KMB) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, July 23rd. The company reported $1.96 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.71 by $0.25. Kimberly-Clark had a net margin of 11.28% and a return on equity of 223.55%. The firm had revenue of $5.03 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $5.10 billion. During the same period last year, the company earned $1.65 earnings per share. The business’s revenue was down 2.0% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts anticipate that Kimberly-Clark Co. will post 7.21 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Kimberly-Clark Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, July 2nd. Stockholders of record on Friday, June 7th were paid a $1.22 dividend. This represents a $4.88 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.44%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, June 7th. Kimberly-Clark’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 89.71%.

Insider Activity

In related news, insider Jeffrey P. Melucci sold 37,699 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, July 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $141.42, for a total value of $5,331,392.58. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 19,935 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,819,207.70. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. In other Kimberly-Clark news, insider Jeffrey P. Melucci sold 6,390 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, April 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $135.59, for a total value of $866,420.10. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 33,649 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,562,467.91. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, insider Jeffrey P. Melucci sold 37,699 shares of Kimberly-Clark stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, July 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $141.42, for a total transaction of $5,331,392.58. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 19,935 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,819,207.70. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 51,462 shares of company stock worth $7,206,653 over the last 90 days. 0.62% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several brokerages have recently weighed in on KMB. Barclays decreased their price target on Kimberly-Clark from $136.00 to $135.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, July 19th. TD Cowen began coverage on shares of Kimberly-Clark in a report on Tuesday, July 23rd. They set a “buy” rating and a $161.00 price target for the company. Royal Bank of Canada reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and issued a $165.00 price objective on shares of Kimberly-Clark in a research note on Wednesday. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their target price on shares of Kimberly-Clark from $123.00 to $135.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a research note on Monday, July 22nd. Finally, Piper Sandler upped their price target on shares of Kimberly-Clark from $167.00 to $174.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, July 11th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have given a hold rating and seven have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $145.67.

Kimberly-Clark Company Profile

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.