Merit Financial Group LLC Grows Position in Kimberly-Clark Co. (NYSE:KMB)

Merit Financial Group LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Kimberly-Clark Co. (NYSE:KMB - Free Report) by 26.4% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 9,574 shares of the company's stock after purchasing an additional 2,002 shares during the quarter. Merit Financial Group LLC's holdings in Kimberly-Clark were worth $1,255,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the business. First National Bank of Mount Dora Trust Investment Services boosted its stake in Kimberly-Clark by 2.8% in the fourth quarter. First National Bank of Mount Dora Trust Investment Services now owns 3,958 shares of the company's stock worth $519,000 after buying an additional 109 shares in the last quarter. Avanza Fonder AB purchased a new stake in Kimberly-Clark in the fourth quarter worth approximately $4,728,000. Tompkins Financial Corp boosted its stake in Kimberly-Clark by 3.1% in the fourth quarter. Tompkins Financial Corp now owns 56,542 shares of the company's stock worth $7,409,000 after buying an additional 1,693 shares in the last quarter. Goldstone Financial Group LLC purchased a new stake in Kimberly-Clark in the fourth quarter worth approximately $332,000. Finally, Carnegie Investment Counsel boosted its stake in Kimberly-Clark by 1.5% in the fourth quarter. Carnegie Investment Counsel now owns 10,933 shares of the company's stock worth $1,433,000 after buying an additional 164 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 76.29% of the company's stock.

Kimberly-Clark Stock Down 0.6 %

KMB traded down $0.75 during trading on Tuesday, reaching $126.47. The stock had a trading volume of 1,836,446 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,911,769. The stock's 50 day moving average is $132.29 and its two-hundred day moving average is $137.91. The company has a current ratio of 0.83, a quick ratio of 0.55 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 4.77. The company has a market capitalization of $42.17 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.40, a P/E/G ratio of 3.56 and a beta of 0.41. Kimberly-Clark Co. has a one year low of $117.67 and a one year high of $149.30.

Kimberly-Clark (NYSE:KMB - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, October 22nd. The company reported $1.83 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.69 by $0.14. Kimberly-Clark had a return on equity of 198.59% and a net margin of 12.97%. The business had revenue of $4.95 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.06 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $1.74 earnings per share. The firm's quarterly revenue was down 3.5% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, analysts expect that Kimberly-Clark Co. will post 7.32 earnings per share for the current year.

Kimberly-Clark Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, January 3rd. Stockholders of record on Friday, December 6th were issued a dividend of $1.22 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, December 6th. This represents a $4.88 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.86%. Kimberly-Clark's payout ratio is presently 63.29%.

Insider Activity

In other news, VP Andrew Drexler sold 3,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Friday, November 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $139.01, for a total transaction of $417,030.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 5,053 shares in the company, valued at $702,417.53. This trade represents a 37.25 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 0.62% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts have issued reports on KMB shares. Barclays cut their target price on Kimberly-Clark from $144.00 to $132.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a research note on Friday. TD Cowen lowered Kimberly-Clark from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating and set a $145.00 price objective for the company. in a research note on Wednesday, January 8th. Piper Sandler dropped their price objective on Kimberly-Clark from $175.00 to $161.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research note on Monday, January 6th. Citigroup dropped their price objective on Kimberly-Clark from $125.00 to $118.00 and set a "sell" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, January 15th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price objective on Kimberly-Clark from $140.00 to $130.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, January 7th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have assigned a hold rating and six have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Kimberly-Clark presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $143.71.

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.