Kimberly-Clark Co. (NYSE:KMB) Shares Sold by New York State Common Retirement Fund

New York State Common Retirement Fund lessened its stake in Kimberly-Clark Co. (NYSE:KMB) by 8.0% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 455,131 shares of the company’s stock after selling 39,576 shares during the period. New York State Common Retirement Fund’s holdings in Kimberly-Clark were worth $55,303,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. OFI Invest Asset Management purchased a new stake in shares of Kimberly-Clark during the third quarter worth approximately $25,000. Cranbrook Wealth Management LLC raised its stake in shares of Kimberly-Clark by 90.9% during the fourth quarter. Cranbrook Wealth Management LLC now owns 210 shares of the company’s stock worth $26,000 after purchasing an additional 100 shares during the last quarter. Centerpoint Advisors LLC raised its stake in shares of Kimberly-Clark by 175.0% during the third quarter. Centerpoint Advisors LLC now owns 275 shares of the company’s stock worth $33,000 after purchasing an additional 175 shares during the last quarter. Wetzel Investment Advisors Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Kimberly-Clark during the fourth quarter worth approximately $35,000. Finally, Legacy Financial Group LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Kimberly-Clark during the third quarter worth approximately $37,000. 76.29% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Kimberly-Clark Stock Up 5.5 %

Kimberly-Clark stock opened at $135.98 on Wednesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 6.94, a quick ratio of 0.54 and a current ratio of 0.82. The firm has a market capitalization of $45.81 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 26.15, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.83 and a beta of 0.40. Kimberly-Clark Co. has a fifty-two week low of $116.32 and a fifty-two week high of $147.87. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $124.78 and its two-hundred day moving average is $122.55.

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

Insider Activity at Kimberly-Clark

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

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

KMB has been the subject of several analyst reports. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upped their price target on Kimberly-Clark from $127.00 to $132.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, March 28th. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price objective on Kimberly-Clark from $125.00 to $131.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Thursday, March 28th. Evercore ISI upgraded Kimberly-Clark from an “in-line” rating to an “outperform” rating and increased their price objective for the stock from $133.00 to $150.00 in a research report on Thursday, March 28th. Barclays increased their price objective on Kimberly-Clark from $124.00 to $132.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Friday, April 12th. Finally, StockNews.com upgraded Kimberly-Clark from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, April 11th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have given a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $131.85.

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.