Kimberly-Clark Co. (NYSE:KMB) Shares Sold by Avanza Fonder AB

Avanza Fonder AB reduced its stake in shares of Kimberly-Clark Co. (NYSE:KMB - Free Report) by 14.2% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 30,959 shares of the company's stock after selling 5,120 shares during the period. Avanza Fonder AB's holdings in Kimberly-Clark were worth $4,424,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Marshall Investment Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Kimberly-Clark during the 4th quarter worth approximately $25,000. Minot DeBlois Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Kimberly-Clark in the 4th quarter valued at $29,000. Golden State Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in Kimberly-Clark in the 4th quarter valued at $32,000. Strategic Financial Concepts LLC acquired a new position in Kimberly-Clark in the 4th quarter valued at $33,000. Finally, Roxbury Financial LLC acquired a new position in Kimberly-Clark in the 4th quarter valued at $33,000. 76.29% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts have weighed in on the company. Barclays cut their price target on Kimberly-Clark from $139.00 to $135.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a report on Thursday, April 24th. Piper Sandler cut their price target on Kimberly-Clark from $158.00 to $156.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, April 23rd. UBS Group boosted their price target on Kimberly-Clark from $134.00 to $146.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a report on Thursday, April 17th. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price target on Kimberly-Clark from $130.00 to $140.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a report on Friday, March 28th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada cut their price target on Kimberly-Clark from $165.00 to $162.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, April 23rd. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have given a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $145.08.

Kimberly-Clark Stock Up 0.8%

Kimberly-Clark stock traded up $1.04 during trading on Thursday, reaching $133.89. 1,551,703 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 2,179,658. The company's 50-day moving average is $136.75 and its two-hundred day moving average is $135.33. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 7.05, a quick ratio of 0.54 and a current ratio of 0.80. Kimberly-Clark Co. has a 52-week low of $124.10 and a 52-week high of $150.45. The firm has a market cap of $44.43 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.73, a PEG ratio of 4.46 and a beta of 0.38.

Kimberly-Clark (NYSE:KMB - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 22nd. The company reported $1.93 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.89 by $0.04. Kimberly-Clark had a net margin of 12.69% and a return on equity of 201.43%. The firm had revenue of $4.84 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $4.90 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $2.01 EPS. On average, analysts predict that Kimberly-Clark Co. will post 7.5 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 2nd. Investors of record on Friday, June 6th will be given a dividend of $1.26 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, June 6th. This represents a $5.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.76%. Kimberly-Clark's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 68.66%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, insider Katy Chen sold 740 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $129.70, for a total value of $95,978.00. Following the sale, the insider now owns 3,997 shares in the company, valued at approximately $518,410.90. This represents a 15.62% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. 0.64% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

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.