Barclays PLC Cuts Position in Kimberly-Clark Co. (NYSE:KMB)

Barclays PLC reduced its position in shares of Kimberly-Clark Co. (NYSE:KMB - Free Report) by 34.1% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 1,107,993 shares of the company's stock after selling 573,678 shares during the period. Barclays PLC owned approximately 0.33% of Kimberly-Clark worth $145,193,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Kimberly-Clark by 15.1% in the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 35,142,545 shares of the company's stock valued at $4,605,079,000 after acquiring an additional 4,603,787 shares in the last quarter. Norges Bank purchased a new position in Kimberly-Clark in the 4th quarter worth approximately $582,592,000. Invesco Ltd. raised its position in shares of Kimberly-Clark by 21.9% during the 4th quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 5,653,751 shares of the company's stock valued at $740,868,000 after buying an additional 1,015,141 shares in the last quarter. Raymond James Financial Inc. purchased a new position in Kimberly-Clark in the fourth quarter worth $127,436,000. Finally, Geode Capital Management LLC increased its stake in Kimberly-Clark by 10.4% in the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 8,473,459 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,113,444,000 after acquiring an additional 797,953 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 76.29% of the company's stock.

Kimberly-Clark Stock Performance

KMB stock traded up $2.98 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $142.68. 2,108,241 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,131,823. The company has a current ratio of 0.80, a quick ratio of 0.54 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 7.05. Kimberly-Clark Co. has a 52-week low of $124.10 and a 52-week high of $150.45. The stock has a market cap of $47.32 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.90, a PEG ratio of 4.46 and a beta of 0.37. The stock's 50-day moving average is $139.52 and its 200 day moving average is $135.71.

Kimberly-Clark (NYSE:KMB - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, January 28th. The company reported $1.50 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, meeting the consensus estimate of $1.50. Kimberly-Clark had a return on equity of 201.43% and a net margin of 12.69%. As a group, analysts anticipate that Kimberly-Clark Co. will post 7.5 EPS for the current year.

Kimberly-Clark Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, April 2nd. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 7th were issued a dividend of $1.26 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, March 7th. This represents a $5.04 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.53%. This is an increase from Kimberly-Clark's previous quarterly dividend of $1.22. Kimberly-Clark's payout ratio is currently 66.75%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, VP Andrew Drexler sold 10,838 shares of Kimberly-Clark stock in a transaction on Friday, February 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $141.00, for a total transaction of $1,528,158.00. Following the transaction, the vice president now owns 7,720 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,088,520. The trade was a 58.40 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Company insiders own 0.64% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts have recently issued reports on the company. Barclays upped their price objective on Kimberly-Clark from $138.00 to $144.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a report on Thursday, March 27th. Royal Bank of Canada reiterated an "outperform" rating and issued a $165.00 price objective on shares of Kimberly-Clark in a research report on Thursday. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Kimberly-Clark from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday, March 6th. UBS Group upped their price objective on shares of Kimberly-Clark from $134.00 to $146.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Thursday. Finally, Piper Sandler reaffirmed an "overweight" rating and set a $158.00 price target (down previously from $161.00) on shares of Kimberly-Clark in a research report on Wednesday, January 29th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have issued a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $146.31.

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.