Kimberly-Clark Co. (NYSE:KMB) Shares Sold by Wright Investors Service Inc.

Wright Investors Service Inc. cut its holdings in Kimberly-Clark Co. (NYSE:KMB - Free Report) by 67.7% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 2,426 shares of the company's stock after selling 5,083 shares during the quarter. Wright Investors Service Inc.'s holdings in Kimberly-Clark were worth $318,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. William B. Walkup & Associates Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Kimberly-Clark in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $26,000. Darwin Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in Kimberly-Clark in the third quarter worth approximately $29,000. DiNuzzo Private Wealth Inc. lifted its holdings in Kimberly-Clark by 808.0% during the third quarter. DiNuzzo Private Wealth Inc. now owns 227 shares of the company's stock worth $32,000 after buying an additional 202 shares during the period. Kennebec Savings Bank bought a new stake in Kimberly-Clark during the 3rd quarter valued at $36,000. Finally, ORG Wealth Partners LLC purchased a new position in shares of Kimberly-Clark in the 3rd quarter valued at $39,000. 76.29% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Kimberly-Clark Stock Performance

KMB traded up $0.79 on Tuesday, reaching $126.22. 1,779,015 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,934,139. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 4.77, a current ratio of 0.83 and a quick ratio of 0.55. The company's 50-day moving average price is $132.94 and its 200 day moving average price is $138.31. The firm has a market capitalization of $42.09 billion, a PE ratio of 16.37, a PEG ratio of 2.76 and a beta of 0.41. Kimberly-Clark Co. has a fifty-two week low of $117.67 and a fifty-two week high of $149.30.

Kimberly-Clark (NYSE:KMB - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, October 22nd. The company reported $1.83 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 firm had revenue of $4.95 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.06 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $1.74 earnings per share. The company's revenue was down 3.5% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Kimberly-Clark Co. will post 7.27 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Kimberly-Clark Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, January 3rd. Stockholders of record on Friday, December 6th were paid a $1.22 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, December 6th. This represents a $4.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.87%. Kimberly-Clark's payout ratio is currently 63.29%.

Insider Buying and Selling

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

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts recently weighed in on KMB shares. TD Cowen cut 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 decreased their price target on shares of Kimberly-Clark from $175.00 to $161.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research report on Monday, January 6th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft lifted their price objective on shares of Kimberly-Clark from $146.00 to $147.00 and gave the stock a "hold" rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 8th. Royal Bank of Canada reissued an "outperform" rating and set a $165.00 target price on shares of Kimberly-Clark in a research report on Wednesday, October 23rd. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company cut their price target on shares of Kimberly-Clark from $140.00 to $130.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, January 7th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have given a hold rating and six have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $147.57.

Kimberly-Clark Company 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.