Kimberly-Clark (NYSE:KMB) Posts Earnings Results, Beats Expectations By $0.25 EPS

Key Points

• Kimberly-Clark reported a quarterly EPS of $1.92, exceeding estimates of $1.67 by $0.25, despite a 1.6% decline in revenue compared to the previous year.
• The company's stock price increased 5.0% during mid-day trading, reaching $130.85, with a market capitalization of $43.42 billion.
• Brighton Jones LLC raised its position in Kimberly-Clark by 74.1%, indicating institutional confidence, as 76.29% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Kimberly-Clark (NYSE:KMB - Get Free Report) announced its earnings results on Friday. The company reported $1.92 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.67 by $0.25, Briefing.com reports. Kimberly-Clark had a return on equity of 201.43% and a net margin of 12.69%. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $1.96 earnings per share. The firm's revenue was down 1.6% compared to the same quarter last year.

Kimberly-Clark Price Performance

Kimberly-Clark stock traded up $1.07 during trading hours on Tuesday, hitting $134.21. 2,860,321 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,331,177. The firm's 50-day simple moving average is $131.40 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $134.72. The firm has a market cap of $44.53 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.78, a P/E/G ratio of 4.46 and a beta of 0.33. Kimberly-Clark has a 1-year low of $124.10 and a 1-year high of $150.45. The company has a quick ratio of 0.54, a current ratio of 0.80 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 7.05.

Kimberly-Clark Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, October 2nd. Investors of record on Friday, September 5th will be given a $1.26 dividend. This represents a $5.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.8%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, September 5th. Kimberly-Clark's dividend payout ratio is currently 69.42%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Kimberly-Clark

An institutional investor recently raised its position in Kimberly-Clark stock. Brighton Jones LLC lifted its position in Kimberly-Clark Co. (NYSE:KMB - Free Report) by 74.1% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 6,494 shares of the company's stock after buying an additional 2,765 shares during the period. Brighton Jones LLC's holdings in Kimberly-Clark were worth $851,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 76.29% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts have weighed in on KMB shares. Piper Sandler began coverage on shares of Kimberly-Clark in a report on Friday, July 18th. They set an "overweight" rating and a $144.00 price objective for the company. Barclays boosted their price objective on Kimberly-Clark from $134.00 to $139.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a report on Monday. Evercore ISI decreased their target price on Kimberly-Clark from $168.00 to $155.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, April 23rd. Wall Street Zen cut Kimberly-Clark from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Thursday, April 24th. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada lowered their target price on shares of Kimberly-Clark from $165.00 to $162.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, April 23rd. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have given a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Kimberly-Clark has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average 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.