Kimberly-Clark Co. (NYSE:KMB) Shares Sold by Nissay Asset Management Corp Japan ADV

Nissay Asset Management Corp Japan ADV decreased its stake in Kimberly-Clark Co. (NYSE:KMB - Free Report) by 12.5% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 75,020 shares of the company's stock after selling 10,752 shares during the period. Nissay Asset Management Corp Japan ADV's holdings in Kimberly-Clark were worth $9,888,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors have also modified their holdings of KMB. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Kimberly-Clark by 15.1% in the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 35,142,545 shares of the company's stock valued at $4,605,079,000 after buying an additional 4,603,787 shares in the last quarter. Norges Bank acquired a new position in shares of Kimberly-Clark in the 4th quarter valued at $582,592,000. First Trust Advisors LP raised its position in Kimberly-Clark by 163.1% in the 4th quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 2,142,749 shares of the company's stock valued at $280,786,000 after purchasing an additional 1,328,341 shares during the last quarter. Invesco Ltd. raised its position in Kimberly-Clark by 21.9% in the 4th quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 5,653,751 shares of the company's stock valued at $740,868,000 after purchasing an additional 1,015,141 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Raymond James Financial Inc. purchased a new stake in Kimberly-Clark in the 4th quarter valued at $127,436,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 76.29% of the company's stock.

Kimberly-Clark Stock Performance

Shares of KMB opened at $133.65 on Thursday. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $137.38 and a 200-day simple moving average of $134.70. 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 company has a market capitalization of $44.35 billion, a PE ratio of 17.70, a P/E/G ratio of 4.46 and a beta of 0.35. Kimberly-Clark Co. has a 52-week low of $124.10 and a 52-week high of $150.45.

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 (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.89 by $0.04. The business 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 last year, the firm posted $2.01 EPS. Equities research analysts predict that Kimberly-Clark Co. will post 7.5 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Kimberly-Clark Dividend Announcement

The business 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 $1.26 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, June 6th. This represents a $5.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.77%. Kimberly-Clark's dividend payout ratio is presently 68.66%.

Insider Activity

In other news, VP Andrew Drexler sold 2,500 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of $140.00, for a total value of $350,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now owns 2,553 shares in the company, valued at $357,420. This trade represents a 49.48% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, insider Katy Chen sold 740 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $129.70, for a total transaction of $95,978.00. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 3,997 shares of the company's stock, valued at $518,410.90. This trade represents a 15.62% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 15,872 shares of company stock worth $2,208,684 in the last 90 days. 0.64% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts recently commented on KMB shares. UBS Group upped their price target on shares of Kimberly-Clark from $134.00 to $146.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Thursday, April 17th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price target on shares of Kimberly-Clark from $124.00 to $131.00 and gave the company an "underweight" rating in a research report on Friday, April 11th. StockNews.com downgraded shares of Kimberly-Clark from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Thursday, April 24th. Citigroup cut their price objective on shares of Kimberly-Clark from $125.00 to $118.00 and set a "sell" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, January 15th. Finally, Evercore ISI cut their price objective on shares of Kimberly-Clark from $168.00 to $155.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, April 23rd. 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.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $145.08.

Kimberly-Clark 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.

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