Kimberly-Clark Co. (NYSE:KMB) Shares Sold by Ieq Capital LLC

Ieq Capital LLC decreased its position in shares of Kimberly-Clark Co. (NYSE:KMB) by 55.2% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 7,721 shares of the company’s stock after selling 9,524 shares during the period. Ieq Capital LLC’s holdings in Kimberly-Clark were worth $1,012,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Migdal Insurance & Financial Holdings Ltd. acquired a new position in shares of Kimberly-Clark in the 4th quarter valued at $25,000. Darwin Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in Kimberly-Clark during the 3rd quarter worth $29,000. Roxbury Financial LLC acquired a new position in Kimberly-Clark in the fourth quarter valued at $33,000. Golden State Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Kimberly-Clark in the fourth quarter valued at about $32,000. Finally, Synergy Asset Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Kimberly-Clark during the fourth quarter worth about $35,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 76.29% of the company’s stock.

Kimberly-Clark Trading Down 0.3 %

Shares of KMB opened at $139.90 on Tuesday. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $130.54 and its two-hundred day moving average is $136.45. Kimberly-Clark Co. has a twelve month low of $120.49 and a twelve month high of $149.30. The company has a current ratio of 0.80, a quick ratio of 0.54 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 7.05. The firm has a market capitalization of $46.40 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.53, a PEG ratio of 4.46 and a beta of 0.41.

Kimberly-Clark (NYSE:KMB) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, January 28th. The company reported $1.50 earnings per share for the quarter, hitting analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.50. Kimberly-Clark had a return on equity of 201.43% and a net margin of 12.69%. On average, research analysts predict that Kimberly-Clark Co. will post 7.5 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Kimberly-Clark Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, April 2nd. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 7th will be paid a dividend of $1.26 per share. This represents a $5.04 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.60%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 7th. This is an increase from Kimberly-Clark’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.22. Kimberly-Clark’s payout ratio is 66.75%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Kimberly-Clark news, VP Andrew Drexler sold 2,500 shares of Kimberly-Clark stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $140.00, for a total transaction of $350,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now owns 2,553 shares in the company, valued at approximately $357,420. The trade was a 49.48 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Insiders own 0.62% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts recently issued reports on KMB shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their price target on Kimberly-Clark from $140.00 to $124.00 and set an “underweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, January 16th. Piper Sandler reissued an “overweight” rating and issued a $158.00 target price (down previously from $161.00) on shares of Kimberly-Clark in a report on Wednesday, January 29th. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price target on Kimberly-Clark from $140.00 to $130.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, January 7th. Barclays dropped their price objective on shares of Kimberly-Clark from $144.00 to $132.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, January 17th. Finally, StockNews.com cut shares of Kimberly-Clark from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Saturday, February 15th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have assigned a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Kimberly-Clark has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $143.64.

Kimberly-Clark 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.