NatWest Group plc Increases Stake in Kimberly-Clark Co. $KMB

Key Points

• NatWest Group plc increased its holdings in Kimberly-Clark Co. by 120.3% in the first quarter, resulting in ownership of 92,662 shares valued at approximately $13.18 million.
• Kimberly-Clark reported $1.92 EPS in its latest earnings, exceeding analysts' expectations of $1.67, despite a revenue decline of 1.6% year-over-year.
• The company announced a quarterly dividend of $1.26 per share with a yield of 3.9%, payable on October 2nd, reflecting a payout ratio of 69.42%.

NatWest Group plc boosted its stake in shares of Kimberly-Clark Co. (NYSE:KMB - Free Report) by 120.3% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 92,662 shares of the company's stock after purchasing an additional 50,596 shares during the quarter. Kimberly-Clark comprises 3.9% of NatWest Group plc's holdings, making the stock its 12th largest holding. NatWest Group plc's holdings in Kimberly-Clark were worth $13,178,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Brighton Jones LLC boosted its holdings in Kimberly-Clark by 74.1% in the fourth quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 6,494 shares of the company's stock worth $851,000 after acquiring an additional 2,765 shares in the last quarter. Ancora Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in Kimberly-Clark by 10.2% in the fourth quarter. Ancora Advisors LLC now owns 1,169 shares of the company's stock worth $153,000 after acquiring an additional 108 shares in the last quarter. Captrust Financial Advisors boosted its holdings in Kimberly-Clark by 2.1% in the fourth quarter. Captrust Financial Advisors now owns 85,786 shares of the company's stock worth $11,241,000 after acquiring an additional 1,777 shares in the last quarter. BOKF NA boosted its holdings in Kimberly-Clark by 52.1% in the fourth quarter. BOKF NA now owns 28,851 shares of the company's stock worth $3,591,000 after acquiring an additional 9,879 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Centiva Capital LP boosted its holdings in Kimberly-Clark by 25.7% in the fourth quarter. Centiva Capital LP now owns 6,390 shares of the company's stock worth $837,000 after acquiring an additional 1,306 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 76.29% of the company's stock.

Kimberly-Clark Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:KMB traded up $0.72 during trading on Friday, hitting $129.89. The stock had a trading volume of 2,186,999 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,307,223. Kimberly-Clark Co. has a 12-month low of $124.10 and a 12-month high of $150.45. The stock has a market capitalization of $43.09 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.20, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.46 and a beta of 0.32. The company has a quick ratio of 0.54, a current ratio of 0.80 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 7.05. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $130.57 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $134.89.

Kimberly-Clark (NYSE:KMB - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Friday, August 1st. The company reported $1.92 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.67 by $0.25. Kimberly-Clark had a return on equity of 201.43% and a net margin of 12.69%.The firm had revenue of $4.16 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $4.85 billion. During the same period last year, the business posted $1.96 earnings per share. The company's revenue for the quarter was down 1.6% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities research analysts expect that Kimberly-Clark Co. will post 7.5 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Kimberly-Clark Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, October 2nd. Investors of record on Friday, September 5th will be given a dividend of $1.26 per share. This represents a $5.04 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.9%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, September 5th. Kimberly-Clark's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 69.42%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

KMB has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. UBS Group lowered their price target on Kimberly-Clark from $146.00 to $139.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a report on Thursday, July 17th. Piper Sandler initiated coverage on Kimberly-Clark in a report on Friday, July 18th. They issued an "overweight" rating and a $144.00 price target for the company. Barclays raised their price target on Kimberly-Clark from $134.00 to $139.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a report on Monday, August 4th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. upgraded Kimberly-Clark from an "underweight" rating to a "neutral" rating and raised their price objective for the stock from $125.00 to $138.00 in a research note on Monday, August 4th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, six have issued a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $142.70.

About Kimberly-Clark

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.