Royal Fund Management LLC Buys 1,142 Shares of Kimberly-Clark Co. (NYSE:KMB)

Royal Fund Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Kimberly-Clark Co. (NYSE:KMB) by 4.4% in the first quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 26,832 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 1,142 shares during the period. Royal Fund Management LLC’s holdings in Kimberly-Clark were worth $3,469,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of KMB. Rise Advisors LLC grew its position in shares of Kimberly-Clark by 926.3% during the 1st quarter. Rise Advisors LLC now owns 195 shares of the company’s stock valued at $25,000 after acquiring an additional 176 shares during the period. Cranbrook Wealth Management LLC grew its position in shares of Kimberly-Clark by 90.9% during the 4th quarter. Cranbrook Wealth Management LLC now owns 210 shares of the company’s stock valued at $26,000 after acquiring an additional 100 shares during the period. Wetzel Investment Advisors Inc. purchased a new position in Kimberly-Clark in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $35,000. Bruce G. Allen Investments LLC purchased a new position in Kimberly-Clark in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $37,000. Finally, Northwest Financial Advisors purchased a new position in Kimberly-Clark in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $40,000. 76.29% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insider Transactions at Kimberly-Clark

In other Kimberly-Clark news, insider Paula Ramos sold 10,178 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, April 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $137.17, for a total value of $1,396,116.26. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 795 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $109,050.15. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. In other Kimberly-Clark news, insider Katy Chen sold 454 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, April 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $135.24, for a total value of $61,398.96. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 520 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $70,324.80. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, insider Paula Ramos sold 10,178 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, April 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $137.17, for a total transaction of $1,396,116.26. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 795 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $109,050.15. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 24,395 shares of company stock valued at $3,332,776. Insiders own 0.62% of the company’s stock.

Kimberly-Clark Price Performance

Shares of NYSE KMB traded down $0.65 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $139.47. 3,481,144 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,980,526. Kimberly-Clark Co. has a 52 week low of $116.32 and a 52 week high of $142.20. The company has a quick ratio of 0.54, a current ratio of 0.81 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 6.05. The stock has a market capitalization of $46.96 billion, a PE ratio of 25.64, a PEG ratio of 3.16 and a beta of 0.38. The company’s 50 day moving average price is $134.54 and its 200 day moving average price is $126.95.

Kimberly-Clark (NYSE:KMB) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, April 23rd. The company reported $2.01 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.61 by $0.40. Kimberly-Clark had a net margin of 9.05% and a return on equity of 250.28%. The company had revenue of $5.15 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.08 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $1.67 EPS. The firm’s revenue was down .9% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts forecast that Kimberly-Clark Co. will post 7.06 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Kimberly-Clark Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, July 2nd. Stockholders of record on Friday, June 7th will be issued a dividend of $1.22 per share. This represents a $4.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.50%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, June 7th. Kimberly-Clark’s dividend payout ratio is currently 89.71%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

KMB has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. Evercore ISI upgraded shares of Kimberly-Clark from an “in-line” rating to an “outperform” rating and lifted their price objective for the company from $133.00 to $150.00 in a research note on Thursday, March 28th. HSBC lifted their price objective on shares of Kimberly-Clark from $146.00 to $150.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 24th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price objective on shares of Kimberly-Clark from $131.00 to $136.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 24th. Royal Bank of Canada reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $165.00 price objective on shares of Kimberly-Clark in a research note on Tuesday, June 18th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft boosted their price target on shares of Kimberly-Clark from $127.00 to $132.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, March 28th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have assigned a hold rating, five have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $141.31.

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.