Kimberly-Clark (NYSE:KMB) Reaches New 1-Year Low - Here's Why

Key Points

• Kimberly-Clark's stock has reached a new 52-week low at $118.17 during trading, significantly down from its previous close of $120.21.
• Multiple analysts have downgraded their target prices for Kimberly-Clark, with UBS reducing it from $140.00 to $130.00, and JPMorgan from $144.00 to $127.00, both maintaining a "neutral" rating.
• The company reported quarterly earnings of $1.92 per share, exceeding estimates, but revenue was below expectations at $4.16 billion, reflecting a 1.6% decline from the same quarter last year.

Kimberly-Clark Co. (NYSE:KMB - Get Free Report)'s stock price hit a new 52-week low during mid-day trading on Thursday . The company traded as low as $118.17 and last traded at $118.45, with a volume of 556095 shares changing hands. The stock had previously closed at $120.21.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

KMB has been the subject of several research analyst reports. UBS Group reduced their target price on Kimberly-Clark from $140.00 to $130.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, October 8th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price objective on Kimberly-Clark from $144.00 to $127.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research note on Friday, October 10th. Piper Sandler dropped their target price on Kimberly-Clark from $149.00 to $145.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a report on Thursday, October 2nd. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their target price on Kimberly-Clark from $140.00 to $130.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a report on Thursday, September 25th. Finally, Evercore ISI lowered their price target on Kimberly-Clark from $155.00 to $150.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a report on Monday, September 22nd. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, five have issued a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $137.00.

Kimberly-Clark Trading Down 1.6%

The firm has a market capitalization of $39.23 billion, a PE ratio of 15.68, a PEG ratio of 4.46 and a beta of 0.30. The company has a current ratio of 0.80, a quick ratio of 0.54 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 7.05. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $125.81 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $130.93.

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

Kimberly-Clark Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, October 2nd. Investors of record on Friday, September 5th were paid a dividend of $1.26 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, September 5th. This represents a $5.04 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.3%. Kimberly-Clark's dividend payout ratio is presently 69.42%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Kimberly-Clark

Several hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of KMB. Investment Research & Advisory Group Inc. acquired a new position in Kimberly-Clark during the 2nd quarter worth about $25,000. First Pacific Financial acquired a new position in Kimberly-Clark during the 1st quarter worth about $26,000. True Wealth Design LLC raised its position in Kimberly-Clark by 177.6% in the 3rd quarter. True Wealth Design LLC now owns 211 shares of the company's stock valued at $26,000 after purchasing an additional 135 shares in the last quarter. Princeton Global Asset Management LLC raised its position in Kimberly-Clark by 989.5% in the 2nd quarter. Princeton Global Asset Management LLC now owns 207 shares of the company's stock valued at $27,000 after purchasing an additional 188 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Winnow Wealth LLC acquired a new stake in Kimberly-Clark in the 2nd quarter valued at about $27,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 76.29% of the company's stock.

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.

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