Woodline Partners LP Purchases Shares of 15,279 Kimberly-Clark Co. (NYSE:KMB)

Woodline Partners LP purchased a new position in shares of Kimberly-Clark Co. (NYSE:KMB - Free Report) during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor purchased 15,279 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,002,000.

Other large investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Migdal Insurance & Financial Holdings Ltd. purchased a new stake in shares of Kimberly-Clark during the fourth quarter valued at $25,000. Marshall Investment Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Kimberly-Clark during the fourth quarter valued at $25,000. Minot DeBlois Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Kimberly-Clark during the 4th quarter worth about $29,000. Golden State Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in Kimberly-Clark during the 4th quarter worth about $32,000. Finally, Strategic Financial Concepts LLC acquired a new stake in Kimberly-Clark during the 4th quarter worth about $33,000. 76.29% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Kimberly-Clark Price Performance

KMB stock traded up $0.94 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $143.62. The company's stock had a trading volume of 387,347 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,178,032. The stock has a market cap of $47.65 billion, a PE ratio of 19.02, a P/E/G ratio of 4.46 and a beta of 0.35. The company has a current ratio of 0.80, a quick ratio of 0.54 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 7.05. Kimberly-Clark Co. has a fifty-two week low of $124.10 and a fifty-two week high of $150.45. The company's 50 day moving average is $137.52 and its two-hundred day moving average is $135.25.

Kimberly-Clark (NYSE:KMB - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, April 22nd. The company reported $1.93 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.89 by $0.04. The company had revenue of $4.84 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.90 billion. Kimberly-Clark had a net margin of 12.69% and a return on equity of 201.43%. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $2.01 EPS. Equities research analysts expect that Kimberly-Clark Co. will post 7.5 EPS for the current year.

Kimberly-Clark Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, July 2nd. Stockholders of record on Friday, June 6th will be issued 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 dividend yield of 3.51%. Kimberly-Clark's dividend payout ratio is currently 68.66%.

Insider Transactions at Kimberly-Clark

In related news, insider Katy Chen sold 740 shares of Kimberly-Clark stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, May 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $129.70, for a total value of $95,978.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 3,997 shares in the company, valued at approximately $518,410.90. This trade represents a 15.62% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Insiders own 0.64% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms have recently issued reports on KMB. Wells Fargo & Company increased their target price on shares of Kimberly-Clark from $130.00 to $140.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Friday, March 28th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their target price on shares of Kimberly-Clark from $124.00 to $131.00 and gave the stock an "underweight" rating in a research note on Friday, April 11th. Barclays lowered their target price on shares of Kimberly-Clark from $139.00 to $135.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, April 24th. Evercore ISI lowered their target price on shares of Kimberly-Clark from $168.00 to $155.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, April 23rd. Finally, UBS Group increased their target price on shares of Kimberly-Clark from $134.00 to $146.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Thursday, April 17th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have assigned a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $145.08.

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.