Vestcor Inc Lowers Position in Kimberly-Clark Co. (NYSE:KMB)

Vestcor Inc decreased its holdings in shares of Kimberly-Clark Co. (NYSE:KMB) by 4.4% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 27,580 shares of the company’s stock after selling 1,259 shares during the quarter. Vestcor Inc’s holdings in Kimberly-Clark were worth $3,614,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in KMB. Assetmark Inc. grew its holdings in Kimberly-Clark by 85.7% during the 3rd quarter. Assetmark Inc. now owns 14,833 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,110,000 after acquiring an additional 6,847 shares in the last quarter. Apollon Wealth Management LLC grew its position in shares of Kimberly-Clark by 7.6% in the 3rd quarter. Apollon Wealth Management LLC now owns 13,689 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,948,000 after buying an additional 966 shares during the last quarter. Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. boosted its stake in Kimberly-Clark by 1.5% in the 3rd quarter. Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. now owns 818,018 shares of the company’s stock worth $116,388,000 after purchasing an additional 11,937 shares in the last quarter. Verus Capital Partners LLC acquired a new stake in Kimberly-Clark in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $214,000. Finally, Aptus Capital Advisors LLC boosted its stake in Kimberly-Clark by 23.7% in the 3rd quarter. Aptus Capital Advisors LLC now owns 3,304 shares of the company’s stock worth $470,000 after purchasing an additional 634 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 76.29% of the company’s stock.

Kimberly-Clark Stock Performance

Kimberly-Clark stock opened at $140.07 on Friday. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $133.33 and its 200 day moving average price is $136.53. The firm has a market capitalization of $46.46 billion, a PE ratio of 18.55, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.46 and a beta of 0.36. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 7.05, a quick ratio of 0.54 and a current ratio of 0.80. Kimberly-Clark Co. has a one year low of $123.02 and a one year high of $150.45.

Kimberly-Clark (NYSE:KMB) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, January 28th. The company reported $1.50 EPS for the quarter, hitting analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.50. Kimberly-Clark had a return on equity of 201.43% and a net margin of 12.69%. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that Kimberly-Clark Co. will post 7.5 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Kimberly-Clark Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, April 2nd. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 7th will be issued a $1.26 dividend. This is a positive change from Kimberly-Clark’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.22. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 7th. This represents a $5.04 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.60%. Kimberly-Clark’s dividend payout ratio is 66.75%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms recently issued reports on KMB. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Kimberly-Clark from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, March 6th. Citigroup dropped their target price on shares of Kimberly-Clark from $125.00 to $118.00 and set a “sell” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, January 15th. TD Cowen lowered shares of Kimberly-Clark from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and set a $145.00 price objective for the company. in a report on Wednesday, January 8th. Royal Bank of Canada reissued an “outperform” rating and set a $165.00 price target on shares of Kimberly-Clark in a research report on Friday, January 24th. Finally, Barclays cut their target price on shares of Kimberly-Clark from $144.00 to $132.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, January 17th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have given a hold rating and six have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Kimberly-Clark currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $143.64.

Insider Activity at Kimberly-Clark

In other news, VP Andrew Drexler sold 10,838 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $141.00, for a total transaction of $1,528,158.00. Following the transaction, the vice president now owns 7,720 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,088,520. This represents a 58.40 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. 0.62% of the stock is owned by insiders.

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.