Cantor Fitzgerald Investment Advisors L.P. Sells 17,553 Shares of Kimberly-Clark Corporation $KMB

Key Points

• Cantor Fitzgerald Investment Advisors trimmed its Kimberly‑Clark stake by 16.1%, selling 17,553 shares and leaving 91,721 shares worth about $9.25 million, while institutional investors own roughly 76.29% of the company.
• Analysts have pared price targets and adjusted ratings recently, leaving a MarketBeat consensus of "Hold" with an average target of $115.07 (4 Buys, 11 Holds, 1 Sell).
• Near‑term risks include recent California distribution and warehouse fires that could disrupt supply, even as Kimberly‑Clark raised its quarterly dividend to $1.28 (5.3% yield) and reported a quarterly EPS beat of $1.86.

Cantor Fitzgerald Investment Advisors L.P. lessened its holdings in Kimberly-Clark Corporation (NASDAQ:KMB - Free Report) by 16.1% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 91,721 shares of the company's stock after selling 17,553 shares during the quarter. Cantor Fitzgerald Investment Advisors L.P.'s holdings in Kimberly-Clark were worth $9,254,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of KMB. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA increased its holdings in Kimberly-Clark by 50.4% in the 4th quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 7,839,572 shares of the company's stock valued at $790,934,000 after buying an additional 2,628,206 shares during the period. State Street Corp increased its holdings in Kimberly-Clark by 5.0% in the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 20,830,890 shares of the company's stock valued at $2,615,382,000 after buying an additional 997,397 shares during the period. Balyasny Asset Management L.P. increased its holdings in Kimberly-Clark by 32,568.4% in the 2nd quarter. Balyasny Asset Management L.P. now owns 978,419 shares of the company's stock valued at $126,138,000 after buying an additional 975,424 shares during the period. Sarasin & Partners LLP increased its holdings in Kimberly-Clark by 88.9% in the 3rd quarter. Sarasin & Partners LLP now owns 2,048,544 shares of the company's stock valued at $251,274,000 after buying an additional 963,978 shares during the period. Finally, Marshall Wace LLP increased its holdings in Kimberly-Clark by 331.6% in the 3rd quarter. Marshall Wace LLP now owns 1,107,640 shares of the company's stock valued at $137,724,000 after buying an additional 851,024 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 76.29% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

KMB has been the topic of several analyst reports. Zacks Research lowered shares of Kimberly-Clark from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Tuesday, March 3rd. Piper Sandler lowered their target price on shares of Kimberly-Clark from $133.00 to $114.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a report on Friday, March 13th. Bank of America lowered their target price on shares of Kimberly-Clark from $130.00 to $120.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Friday. TD Cowen lowered their target price on shares of Kimberly-Clark from $112.00 to $105.00 and set a "hold" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, January 8th. Finally, Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a "hold (c-)" rating on shares of Kimberly-Clark in a report on Friday, March 27th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, eleven have given a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $115.07.

Key Kimberly-Clark News

Here are the key news stories impacting Kimberly-Clark this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Bank of America cut its price target to $120 but kept a "Buy" rating, signaling continued confidence in upside despite a lower target. Benzinga: BofA price target
• Positive Sentiment: Street fair‑value estimates were nudged higher — a refresh to about $116.79 from $114.46 — suggesting some analysts are giving more credit for execution, cost management and hedging progress. How Kimberly Clark Investors Are Reframing The Story On Costs Sentiment And Fair Value
• Positive Sentiment: Kotex launched an art‑forward campaign to confront menstrual taboos — a brand/marketing initiative that can help premium positioning and e‑commerce engagement over time. Kotex campaign
• Neutral Sentiment: Analyst and media pieces are revisiting valuation: some lists include KMB among potentially undervalued names, while valuation deep‑dives note weak recent shareholder returns — these keep KMB in investors' screens but don't change the near‑term ops picture. 3 Stocks Possibly Undervalued Assessing Kimberly‑Clark Valuation
• Neutral Sentiment: ResearchAndMarkets published a digital‑transformation company profile highlighting e‑commerce and tech initiatives that could aid long‑term distribution and margin improvement, but this is a longer‑horizon positive. Digital transformation report
• Neutral Sentiment: Short‑interest data for April shows anomalous/zero values (likely a reporting glitch), so there is no clear short‑squeeze signal at present.
• Negative Sentiment: A major fire at the Ontario, CA distribution plant — with reported arson allegations — increases near‑term supply‑chain risk, potential repair/insurance costs and reputational/legal uncertainty; this is the most immediate negative driver for the stock. Ontario plant fire and arson Company comments on fire
• Negative Sentiment: Separate coverage of a California toilet‑paper warehouse destroyed by fire raises additional short‑term fulfillment concerns for core categories (TMs, toilet paper). Warehouse fire impact
• Negative Sentiment: Wells Fargo trimmed its target to $100 (from $110) and kept an Equal‑Weight call, citing inflation‑driven margin pressure — reinforcing analyst caution on near‑term margins. Wells Fargo target trimmed

Kimberly-Clark Stock Down 0.7%

Shares of NASDAQ KMB opened at $97.28 on Friday. The firm's 50-day simple moving average is $102.63 and its 200 day simple moving average is $106.06. The company has a market cap of $32.29 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.03, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.56 and a beta of 0.28. The company has a quick ratio of 0.54, a current ratio of 0.75 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.97. Kimberly-Clark Corporation has a 12-month low of $92.42 and a 12-month high of $144.30.

Kimberly-Clark (NASDAQ:KMB - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, January 27th. The company reported $1.86 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.81 by $0.05. Kimberly-Clark had a net margin of 11.73% and a return on equity of 170.48%. The company had revenue of $4.08 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.11 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $1.50 EPS. The company's revenue was down .6% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, research analysts expect that Kimberly-Clark Corporation will post 7.5 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Kimberly-Clark Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, April 2nd. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 6th were given a dividend of $1.28 per share. This represents a $5.12 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 5.3%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, March 6th. This is a boost from Kimberly-Clark's previous quarterly dividend of $1.26. Kimberly-Clark's dividend payout ratio is currently 84.35%.

Insider Transactions at Kimberly-Clark

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

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.

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest reporting and unbiased coverage. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.