Kimberly-Clark Corporation $KMB Shares Acquired by Vaughan David Investments LLC IL

Key Points

• Vaughan David Investments LLC IL increased its Kimberly-Clark stake by 6.4% in the fourth quarter, ending with 299,642 shares valued at about $30.2 million.
• Several other institutional investors also boosted or initiated positions, and hedge funds and institutions now own 76.29% of Kimberly-Clark shares.
• Kimberly-Clark reported quarterly EPS of $1.97, topping estimates, and announced a $1.28 quarterly dividend that implies a 5.0% annual yield.

Vaughan David Investments LLC IL raised its stake in shares of Kimberly-Clark Corporation (NASDAQ:KMB - Free Report) by 6.4% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 299,642 shares of the company's stock after purchasing an additional 17,955 shares during the quarter. Vaughan David Investments LLC IL owned about 0.09% of Kimberly-Clark worth $30,231,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of KMB. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in shares of Kimberly-Clark in the fourth quarter worth $521,184,000. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA increased its stake in shares of Kimberly-Clark by 50.4% in the fourth quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 7,839,572 shares of the company's stock worth $790,934,000 after acquiring an additional 2,628,206 shares during the period. State Street Corp increased its stake in shares of Kimberly-Clark by 5.0% in the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 20,830,890 shares of the company's stock worth $2,615,382,000 after acquiring an additional 997,397 shares during the period. Marshall Wace LLP increased its stake in shares of Kimberly-Clark by 331.6% in the third quarter. Marshall Wace LLP now owns 1,107,640 shares of the company's stock worth $137,724,000 after acquiring an additional 851,024 shares during the period. Finally, M&T Bank Corp increased its stake in shares of Kimberly-Clark by 506.1% in the fourth quarter. M&T Bank Corp now owns 758,154 shares of the company's stock worth $76,490,000 after acquiring an additional 633,061 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 76.29% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts have recently weighed in on KMB shares. UBS Group increased their price objective on shares of Kimberly-Clark from $105.00 to $106.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 29th. Piper Sandler cut their price objective on shares of Kimberly-Clark from $133.00 to $114.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, March 13th. Zacks Research downgraded shares of Kimberly-Clark from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Tuesday, March 3rd. Barclays lowered their price target on shares of Kimberly-Clark from $105.00 to $99.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, April 14th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft lowered their price target on shares of Kimberly-Clark from $110.00 to $109.00 and set a "hold" rating on the stock in a report 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 stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Kimberly-Clark currently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $114.93.

Kimberly-Clark Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ KMB opened at $101.54 on Friday. The company's fifty day moving average price is $97.69 and its 200 day moving average price is $100.95. Kimberly-Clark Corporation has a 1 year low of $92.42 and a 1 year high of $137.46. The company has a market capitalization of $33.71 billion, a PE ratio of 15.94, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.56 and a beta of 0.28. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.38, a quick ratio of 0.55 and a current ratio of 0.77.

Kimberly-Clark (NASDAQ:KMB - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, April 28th. The company reported $1.97 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.93 by $0.04. The business had revenue of $4.16 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.09 billion. Kimberly-Clark had a net margin of 12.80% and a return on equity of 152.79%. The company's revenue was up 2.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the firm posted $1.93 earnings per share. On average, research analysts predict that Kimberly-Clark Corporation will post 7.48 earnings per share for the current year.

Kimberly-Clark Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, July 2nd. Shareholders of record on Friday, June 5th will be issued a dividend of $1.28 per share. This represents a $5.12 annualized dividend and a yield of 5.0%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, June 5th. Kimberly-Clark's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 80.38%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Kimberly-Clark

In other Kimberly-Clark news, insider Katy Chen sold 1,596 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, May 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $95.34, for a total transaction of $152,162.64. Following the transaction, the insider directly owned 8,362 shares of the company's stock, valued at $797,233.08. This trade represents a 16.03% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. Also, VP Andrew Scribner sold 4,095 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, May 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $98.00, for a total transaction of $401,310.00. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 7,096 shares of company stock worth $689,687. Insiders own 0.75% of the company's stock.

About Kimberly-Clark

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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