Kimberly-Clark Co. (NYSE:KMB) Shares Acquired by Bank of Nova Scotia

Bank of Nova Scotia raised its position in Kimberly-Clark Co. (NYSE:KMB - Free Report) by 854.9% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 330,907 shares of the company's stock after purchasing an additional 296,255 shares during the period. Bank of Nova Scotia owned 0.10% of Kimberly-Clark worth $40,207,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Cranbrook Wealth Management LLC boosted 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 worth $26,000 after acquiring an additional 100 shares in the last quarter. Wetzel Investment Advisors Inc. purchased a new position in Kimberly-Clark in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $35,000. Bruce G. Allen Investments LLC acquired a new stake in Kimberly-Clark during the fourth quarter worth approximately $37,000. Northwest Financial Advisors acquired a new stake in Kimberly-Clark during the fourth quarter worth approximately $40,000. Finally, Operose Advisors LLC lifted its position in shares of Kimberly-Clark by 122.5% during the 3rd quarter. Operose Advisors LLC now owns 356 shares of the company's stock worth $43,000 after buying an additional 196 shares during the last quarter. 76.29% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Kimberly-Clark Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:KMB traded up $3.63 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $133.30. The stock had a trading volume of 4,228,781 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,637,031. The company has a market capitalization of $44.88 billion, a PE ratio of 24.50, a P/E/G ratio of 3.48 and a beta of 0.38. Kimberly-Clark Co. has a 1 year low of $116.32 and a 1 year high of $139.75. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $131.23 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $125.27. The company has a current ratio of 0.81, a quick ratio of 0.54 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 6.05.

Kimberly-Clark (NYSE:KMB - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, April 23rd. The company reported $2.01 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.61 by $0.40. Kimberly-Clark had a return on equity of 250.28% and a net margin of 9.05%. The firm had revenue of $5.15 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $5.08 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $1.67 earnings per share. Kimberly-Clark's revenue was down .9% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities analysts predict that Kimberly-Clark Co. will post 7.03 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Kimberly-Clark Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, July 2nd. Shareholders of record on Friday, June 7th will be given a dividend of $1.22 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, June 7th. This represents a $4.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.66%. Kimberly-Clark's payout ratio is 89.71%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Kimberly-Clark news, insider Paula Ramos sold 10,178 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, April 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $137.17, for a total transaction of $1,396,116.26. Following the sale, the insider now owns 795 shares in the company, valued at approximately $109,050.15. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. In related news, insider Paula Ramos sold 10,178 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on 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 sale, the insider now owns 795 shares in the company, valued at $109,050.15. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, insider Jeffrey P. Melucci sold 6,390 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Monday, April 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $135.59, for a total value of $866,420.10. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 33,649 shares of the company's stock, valued at $4,562,467.91. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 24,395 shares of company stock worth $3,332,776 in the last three months. Corporate insiders own 0.62% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several brokerages recently commented on KMB. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price target on shares of Kimberly-Clark from $115.00 to $123.00 and gave the stock an "underweight" rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 24th. Piper Sandler boosted their target price on Kimberly-Clark from $145.00 to $152.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Thursday, March 28th. Royal Bank of Canada raised their price target on Kimberly-Clark from $123.00 to $126.00 and gave the stock a "sector perform" rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 24th. StockNews.com cut Kimberly-Clark from a "strong-buy" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday. Finally, Evercore ISI raised Kimberly-Clark from an "in-line" rating to an "outperform" rating and increased their price objective for the company from $133.00 to $150.00 in a report on Thursday, March 28th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have issued a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $134.85.

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.