Entropy Technologies LP Sells 56,113 Shares of Kimberly-Clark Corporation $KMB

Key Points

• Entropy Technologies LP cut its Kimberly-Clark stake by 55.4% in Q1, selling 56,113 shares and ending with 45,256 shares worth about $4.37 million.
• Kimberly-Clark reported better-than-expected quarterly results, with EPS of $1.97 versus $1.93 expected and revenue of $4.16 billion, up 2.7% year over year.
• The company paid a quarterly dividend of $1.28 per share, implying an annualized yield of 4.7%, while analysts currently have a consensus Hold rating with a target price of $117.93.

Entropy Technologies LP lessened its stake in Kimberly-Clark Corporation (NASDAQ:KMB - Free Report) by 55.4% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 45,256 shares of the company's stock after selling 56,113 shares during the quarter. Entropy Technologies LP's holdings in Kimberly-Clark were worth $4,366,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its stake in shares of Kimberly-Clark by 0.8% during the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 40,846,734 shares of the company's stock valued at $4,121,027,000 after purchasing an additional 315,981 shares during the last quarter. State Street Corp raised its position in Kimberly-Clark by 1.4% in the 4th quarter. State Street Corp now owns 21,125,118 shares of the company's stock worth $2,157,746,000 after purchasing an additional 294,228 shares during the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. raised its position in Kimberly-Clark by 2.6% in the 4th quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 11,917,154 shares of the company's stock worth $1,202,322,000 after purchasing an additional 299,382 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its holdings in Kimberly-Clark by 0.8% during the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 8,322,198 shares of the company's stock worth $836,216,000 after buying an additional 65,619 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA lifted its holdings in Kimberly-Clark by 50.4% during the 4th quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 7,839,572 shares of the company's stock worth $790,934,000 after buying an additional 2,628,206 shares in the last quarter. 76.29% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling at Kimberly-Clark

In related news, VP Andrew Scribner sold 4,095 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, May 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $98.00, for a total value of $401,310.00. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, insider Katy Chen sold 1,596 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Monday, May 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $95.34, for a total value of $152,162.64. Following the sale, the insider directly owned 8,362 shares in the company, valued at $797,233.08. The trade was a 16.03% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. Insiders sold a total of 7,096 shares of company stock valued at $689,687 in the last three months. 0.75% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Kimberly-Clark Stock Performance

Shares of KMB stock opened at $109.70 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $36.41 billion, a PE ratio of 17.22, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.92 and a beta of 0.26. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $104.38 and a 200-day moving average of $101.99. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.38, a current ratio of 0.77 and a quick ratio of 0.55. Kimberly-Clark Corporation has a one year low of $92.42 and a one year high of $137.46.

Kimberly-Clark (NASDAQ:KMB - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, April 28th. The company reported $1.97 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.93 by $0.04. The business had revenue of $4.16 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.09 billion. Kimberly-Clark had a net margin of 12.80% and a return on equity of 152.79%. Kimberly-Clark's quarterly revenue was up 2.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $1.93 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that Kimberly-Clark Corporation will post 7.47 earnings per share for the current year.

Kimberly-Clark Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, July 2nd. Stockholders of record on Friday, June 5th were given a dividend of $1.28 per share. This represents a $5.12 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.7%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, June 5th. Kimberly-Clark's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 80.38%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts have recently weighed in on the company. Bank of America dropped their target price on Kimberly-Clark from $130.00 to $120.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Friday, April 10th. Barclays lifted their price objective on Kimberly-Clark from $101.00 to $115.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Tuesday. Weiss Ratings reissued a "hold (c-)" rating on shares of Kimberly-Clark in a report on Wednesday, June 24th. UBS Group upped their target price on shares of Kimberly-Clark from $106.00 to $115.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Thursday, July 16th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reduced their target price on shares of Kimberly-Clark from $110.00 to $109.00 and set a "hold" rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, March 30th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, eleven have given a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $117.93.

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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