Sfmg LLC Grows Holdings in Kimberly-Clark Co. (NYSE:KMB)

Sfmg LLC increased its stake in Kimberly-Clark Co. (NYSE:KMB) by 85.2% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 12,179 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 5,604 shares during the quarter. Sfmg LLC’s holdings in Kimberly-Clark were worth $1,480,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of KMB. Tyche Wealth Partners LLC purchased a new stake in Kimberly-Clark in the fourth quarter worth $625,000. Signet Financial Management LLC purchased a new stake in Kimberly-Clark in the fourth quarter worth $1,637,000. Bison Wealth LLC increased its stake in Kimberly-Clark by 6.2% in the fourth quarter. Bison Wealth LLC now owns 4,586 shares of the company’s stock worth $557,000 after purchasing an additional 269 shares during the period. Cullen Investment Group LTD. purchased a new stake in Kimberly-Clark in the fourth quarter worth $594,000. Finally, Cornercap Investment Counsel Inc. increased its stake in Kimberly-Clark by 1.9% in the fourth quarter. Cornercap Investment Counsel Inc. now owns 14,631 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,778,000 after purchasing an additional 279 shares during the period. 76.29% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Kimberly-Clark Stock Performance

NYSE KMB traded down $0.12 during trading hours on Wednesday, reaching $125.28. The stock had a trading volume of 2,296,007 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,909,675. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $123.91 and a 200 day moving average of $122.23. The stock has a market cap of $42.21 billion, a P/E ratio of 24.09, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.77 and a beta of 0.40. Kimberly-Clark Co. has a 52-week low of $116.32 and a 52-week high of $147.87. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 6.94, a quick ratio of 0.54 and a current ratio of 0.82.

Kimberly-Clark (NYSE:KMB) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, January 24th. The company reported $1.51 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.53 by ($0.02). The firm had revenue of $5 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.99 billion. Kimberly-Clark had a net margin of 8.63% and a return on equity of 260.47%. Kimberly-Clark’s quarterly revenue was up .7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $1.54 EPS. Sell-side analysts predict that Kimberly-Clark Co. will post 6.84 earnings per share for the current year.

Kimberly-Clark Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, April 2nd. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 8th were given a $1.22 dividend. This represents a $4.88 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.90%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, March 7th. This is a positive change from Kimberly-Clark’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.18. Kimberly-Clark’s dividend payout ratio is currently 93.85%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts have weighed in on the company. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft increased their target price on Kimberly-Clark from $127.00 to $132.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, March 28th. Evercore ISI upgraded Kimberly-Clark from an “in-line” rating to an “outperform” rating and increased their target price for the stock from $133.00 to $150.00 in a research note on Thursday, March 28th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their target price on Kimberly-Clark from $119.00 to $125.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 18th. StockNews.com upgraded Kimberly-Clark from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, April 11th. Finally, Piper Sandler raised their price target on Kimberly-Clark from $145.00 to $152.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, March 28th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have given a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Kimberly-Clark presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $132.43.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Kimberly-Clark news, insider Tristram Wilkinson sold 3,720 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, January 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $121.00, for a total value of $450,120.00. Following the sale, the insider now owns 17,229 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,084,709. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. In other Kimberly-Clark news, insider Tristram Wilkinson sold 3,720 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, January 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $121.00, for a total value of $450,120.00. Following the sale, the insider now owns 17,229 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,084,709. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, Director Mark T. Smucker bought 827 shares of Kimberly-Clark stock in a transaction dated Monday, January 29th. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $120.98 per share, with a total value of $100,050.46. Following the completion of the purchase, the director now owns 827 shares in the company, valued at $100,050.46. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Insiders own 0.62% of the company’s stock.

About Kimberly-Clark

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.