Kimberly-Clark Co. (NYSE:KMB) Holdings Decreased by Viking Fund Management LLC

Viking Fund Management LLC trimmed its position in Kimberly-Clark Co. (NYSE:KMB) by 1.3% in the first quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 75,000 shares of the company’s stock after selling 1,000 shares during the quarter. Kimberly-Clark makes up approximately 1.8% of Viking Fund Management LLC’s holdings, making the stock its 15th largest position. Viking Fund Management LLC’s holdings in Kimberly-Clark were worth $9,701,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. American Century Companies Inc. grew its stake in Kimberly-Clark by 14.7% during the 3rd quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 4,996,401 shares of the company’s stock worth $603,815,000 after buying an additional 641,187 shares during the last quarter. Morgan Stanley grew its stake in Kimberly-Clark by 4.6% during the 3rd quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 4,884,941 shares of the company’s stock worth $590,345,000 after buying an additional 212,739 shares during the last quarter. Norges Bank bought a new position in Kimberly-Clark during the 4th quarter worth $437,420,000. Royal Bank of Canada grew its stake in Kimberly-Clark by 31.4% during the 3rd quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 2,197,184 shares of the company’s stock worth $265,530,000 after buying an additional 524,632 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Capital World Investors grew its stake in Kimberly-Clark by 23.8% during the 4th quarter. Capital World Investors now owns 1,926,702 shares of the company’s stock worth $234,114,000 after buying an additional 370,094 shares during the last quarter. 76.29% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Kimberly-Clark Trading Up 0.0 %

Shares of NYSE KMB traded up $0.05 during mid-day trading on Thursday, hitting $139.22. 877,705 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,140,863. Kimberly-Clark Co. has a 1 year low of $116.32 and a 1 year high of $142.20. The stock has a market capitalization of $46.88 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 25.59, a PEG ratio of 3.12 and a beta of 0.38. The company has a quick ratio of 0.54, a current ratio of 0.81 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 6.05. The business has a 50 day moving average of $135.35 and a two-hundred day moving average of $127.29.

Kimberly-Clark (NYSE:KMB) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, April 23rd. The company reported $2.01 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.61 by $0.40. The business had revenue of $5.15 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.08 billion. Kimberly-Clark had a return on equity of 250.28% and a net margin of 9.05%. Kimberly-Clark’s revenue was down .9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $1.67 earnings per share. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Kimberly-Clark Co. will post 7.06 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Kimberly-Clark Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, July 2nd. Investors of record on Friday, June 7th will be given a dividend of $1.22 per share. This represents a $4.88 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.51%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, June 7th. Kimberly-Clark’s payout ratio is 89.71%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

KMB has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft increased their price target on Kimberly-Clark from $127.00 to $132.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, March 28th. The Goldman Sachs Group increased their price target on Kimberly-Clark from $135.00 to $152.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 24th. Barclays increased their price target on Kimberly-Clark from $132.00 to $136.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Thursday, April 25th. Bank of America raised Kimberly-Clark from an “underperform” rating to a “buy” rating and increased their price target for the stock from $115.00 to $160.00 in a research note on Thursday, June 13th. Finally, Evercore ISI raised Kimberly-Clark from an “in-line” rating to an “outperform” rating and increased their price target for the stock from $133.00 to $150.00 in a research note on Thursday, March 28th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have assigned a hold rating and six have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Kimberly-Clark currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $141.64.

Insider Activity at Kimberly-Clark

In related news, insider Doug Cunningham sold 3,833 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Friday, May 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $136.82, for a total transaction of $524,431.06. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. In other Kimberly-Clark news, insider Jeffrey P. Melucci sold 6,390 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, April 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $135.59, for a total value of $866,420.10. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 33,649 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,562,467.91. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, insider Doug Cunningham sold 3,833 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $136.82, for a total value of $524,431.06. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 24,395 shares of company stock valued at $3,332,776. Company insiders own 0.62% of the company’s stock.

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.