AEGON ASSET MANAGEMENT UK Plc Decreases Stock Holdings in Kimberly-Clark Corporation $KMB

Key Points

• AEGON Asset Management UK Plc cut its stake in Kimberly‑Clark by 17.7% in Q4, selling 75,895 shares and now holds 352,625 shares (~0.11%) valued at about $35.58 million.
• VP Andrew Scribner disclosed an insider sale of 3,049 shares on Feb. 5 at an average price of $104.29, totaling roughly $317,980.
• Kimberly‑Clark raised its quarterly dividend to $1.28 (from $1.26), an annualized $5.12 representing a ~5.2% yield and a payout ratio of 84.35%.

AEGON ASSET MANAGEMENT UK Plc decreased its holdings in shares of Kimberly-Clark Corporation (NASDAQ:KMB - Free Report) by 17.7% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 352,625 shares of the company's stock after selling 75,895 shares during the period. AEGON ASSET MANAGEMENT UK Plc owned about 0.11% of Kimberly-Clark worth $35,576,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Nordea Investment Management AB lifted its position in Kimberly-Clark by 2.5% during the 3rd quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 2,439,692 shares of the company's stock worth $301,448,000 after acquiring an additional 58,978 shares during the period. Synergy Asset Management LLC lifted its position in Kimberly-Clark by 100.0% during the 3rd quarter. Synergy Asset Management LLC now owns 38,260 shares of the company's stock worth $4,932,000 after acquiring an additional 19,130 shares during the period. Citigroup Inc. lifted its position in Kimberly-Clark by 3.7% during the 3rd quarter. Citigroup Inc. now owns 399,630 shares of the company's stock worth $49,690,000 after acquiring an additional 14,386 shares during the period. Jain Global LLC purchased a new position in shares of Kimberly-Clark during the 3rd quarter valued at about $11,973,000. Finally, HM Payson & Co. raised its stake in shares of Kimberly-Clark by 100.0% during the 3rd quarter. HM Payson & Co. now owns 20,150 shares of the company's stock valued at $2,505,000 after buying an additional 10,074 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 76.29% of the company's stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, VP Andrew Scribner sold 3,049 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $104.29, for a total value of $317,980.21. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Corporate insiders own 0.75% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts have weighed in on the company. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reduced their price objective on Kimberly-Clark from $110.00 to $109.00 and set a "hold" rating for the company in a research note on Monday, March 30th. Weiss Ratings reiterated a "hold (c-)" rating on shares of Kimberly-Clark in a research note on Friday, March 27th. TD Cowen reduced their price objective on Kimberly-Clark from $112.00 to $105.00 and set a "hold" rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, January 8th. UBS Group reduced their price objective on Kimberly-Clark from $110.00 to $105.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, April 7th. Finally, Citigroup reduced their price objective on Kimberly-Clark from $95.00 to $90.00 and set a "sell" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, January 14th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, eleven have given a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $114.86.

Kimberly-Clark Trading Down 0.1%

Shares of Kimberly-Clark stock opened at $97.85 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $32.48 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.12, a P/E/G ratio of 3.79 and a beta of 0.28. The stock's 50 day simple moving average is $101.17 and its 200-day simple moving average is $104.18. Kimberly-Clark Corporation has a 1-year low of $92.42 and a 1-year high of $144.30. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.97, a current ratio of 0.75 and a quick ratio of 0.54.

Kimberly-Clark (NASDAQ:KMB - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, January 27th. The company reported $1.86 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.81 by $0.05. The business had revenue of $4.08 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $4.11 billion. Kimberly-Clark had a return on equity of 170.48% and a net margin of 11.73%.The business's revenue for the quarter was down .6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $1.50 EPS. Analysts predict that Kimberly-Clark Corporation will post 7.47 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Kimberly-Clark Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, April 2nd. Investors of record on Friday, March 6th were issued a $1.28 dividend. This is a boost from Kimberly-Clark's previous quarterly dividend of $1.26. This represents a $5.12 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 5.2%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, March 6th. Kimberly-Clark's payout ratio is currently 84.35%.

Kimberly-Clark Company Profile

Kimberly-Clark Corporation is a U.S.-based multinational manufacturer of personal care and consumer tissue products. The company develops, produces and markets a range of consumer brands and professional products, including facial and bathroom tissues, disposable diapers and training pants, feminine care, incontinence products and workplace hygiene solutions. Known for consumer-facing names such as Kleenex, Huggies, Kotex, Cottonelle and Scott, as well as professional offerings under Kimberly-Clark Professional and KleenGuard, the company supplies goods to retail, healthcare and institutional customers.

Founded in 1872 in Neenah, Wisconsin, Kimberly-Clark has expanded from its 19th-century paper-making roots into a global household and workplace products company.

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