Morningstar Investment Management LLC Takes Position in Kimberly-Clark Co. (NYSE:KMB)

Morningstar Investment Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Kimberly-Clark Co. (NYSE:KMB – Get Rating) during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor acquired 2,501 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $340,000.

A number of other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in KMB. Bell Investment Advisors Inc increased its holdings in shares of Kimberly-Clark by 1,475.0% during the 4th quarter. Bell Investment Advisors Inc now owns 189 shares of the company’s stock valued at $26,000 after acquiring an additional 177 shares during the last quarter. Fiduciary Alliance LLC bought a new stake in shares of Kimberly-Clark in the 4th quarter worth approximately $28,000. Affiance Financial LLC bought a new stake in shares of Kimberly-Clark in the 4th quarter worth approximately $29,000. Retirement Financial Solutions LLC bought a new stake in shares of Kimberly-Clark in the 4th quarter worth approximately $30,000. Finally, Capital Advisors Ltd. LLC lifted its position in shares of Kimberly-Clark by 221.5% in the 4th quarter. Capital Advisors Ltd. LLC now owns 389 shares of the company’s stock worth $30,000 after acquiring an additional 268 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 74.16% of the company’s stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Kimberly-Clark news, VP Andrew Drexler sold 7,970 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, April 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $145.12, for a total transaction of $1,156,606.40. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now directly owns 4,889 shares in the company, valued at approximately $709,491.68. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. In other Kimberly-Clark news, VP Andrew Drexler sold 7,970 shares of Kimberly-Clark stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, April 27th. The shares were sold at an average price of $145.12, for a total transaction of $1,156,606.40. Following the transaction, the vice president now owns 4,889 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $709,491.68. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, insider Tristram Wilkinson sold 3,434 shares of Kimberly-Clark stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, April 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $144.26, for a total transaction of $495,388.84. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 17,229 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,485,455.54. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 59,416 shares of company stock worth $8,580,971. Company insiders own 0.67% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts recently commented on KMB shares. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft raised their target price on Kimberly-Clark from $123.00 to $133.00 in a research report on Wednesday, April 26th. StockNews.com started coverage on Kimberly-Clark in a research note on Thursday, May 18th. They issued a “buy” rating for the company. Morgan Stanley lifted their target price on Kimberly-Clark from $132.00 to $140.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Monday, April 17th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price objective on Kimberly-Clark from $130.00 to $140.00 in a research note on Wednesday, April 26th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their target price on Kimberly-Clark from $124.00 to $125.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 26th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have assigned a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Kimberly-Clark presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $134.45.

Kimberly-Clark Price Performance

NYSE KMB traded down $1.17 on Friday, hitting $135.87. 516,356 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,679,537. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $138.64 and a 200-day moving average of $134.13. The company has a current ratio of 0.82, a quick ratio of 0.51 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 9.23. Kimberly-Clark Co. has a 52 week low of $108.74 and a 52 week high of $147.87. The stock has a market cap of $45.84 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 23.47, a P/E/G ratio of 3.17 and a beta of 0.40.

Kimberly-Clark (NYSE:KMB – Get Rating) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 25th. The company reported $1.67 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.32 by $0.35. Kimberly-Clark had a return on equity of 279.42% and a net margin of 9.75%. The company had revenue of $5.20 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $5.06 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $1.35 EPS. Kimberly-Clark’s revenue was up 2.0% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts expect that Kimberly-Clark Co. will post 6.19 earnings per share for the current year.

Kimberly-Clark Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, July 5th. Shareholders of record on Friday, June 9th will be issued a dividend of $1.18 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, June 8th. This represents a $4.72 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.47%. Kimberly-Clark’s payout ratio is currently 80.82%.

Kimberly-Clark Company Profile

(Get Rating)

Kimberly-Clark Corp. engages in the manufacture and marketing of products made from natural or synthetic fibers. It operates through the following segments: Personal Care, Consumer Tissue, and K-C Professional. The Personal Care segment offers disposable diapers, training and youth pants, swim pants, baby wipes, feminine and incontinence care products, and other related products.