Allstate Corp Acquires New Holdings in Kimberly-Clark Co. (NYSE:KMB)

Allstate Corp bought a new position in shares of Kimberly-Clark Co. (NYSE:KMB) in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor bought 10,047 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,317,000.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. Marshall Investment Management LLC bought a new stake in Kimberly-Clark during the fourth quarter valued at about $25,000. Migdal Insurance & Financial Holdings Ltd. purchased a new stake in shares of Kimberly-Clark during the fourth quarter valued at about $25,000. Roxbury Financial LLC bought a new stake in shares of Kimberly-Clark in the 4th quarter valued at about $33,000. Golden State Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Kimberly-Clark in the 4th quarter worth approximately $32,000. Finally, Synergy Asset Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Kimberly-Clark during the 4th quarter worth approximately $35,000. Institutional investors own 76.29% of the company’s stock.

Kimberly-Clark Stock Up 0.1 %

Shares of KMB opened at $140.73 on Monday. The company has a market capitalization of $46.67 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.64, a PEG ratio of 4.46 and a beta of 0.36. Kimberly-Clark Co. has a 52 week low of $123.84 and a 52 week high of $150.45. The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $136.12 and its 200-day moving average price is $135.92. 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 (NYSE:KMB) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, January 28th. The company reported $1.50 EPS for the quarter, hitting the consensus estimate of $1.50. Kimberly-Clark had a return on equity of 201.43% and a net margin of 12.69%. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Kimberly-Clark Co. will post 7.5 EPS for the current year.

Kimberly-Clark Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, April 2nd. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 7th will be issued a $1.26 dividend. This is a boost from Kimberly-Clark’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.22. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 7th. This represents a $5.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.58%. Kimberly-Clark’s payout ratio is presently 66.75%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, VP Andrew Drexler sold 10,838 shares of Kimberly-Clark stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $141.00, for a total value of $1,528,158.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now owns 7,720 shares in the company, valued at $1,088,520. The trade was a 58.40 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Insiders own 0.64% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts have issued reports on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price target on shares of Kimberly-Clark from $130.00 to $140.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Friday. Royal Bank of Canada reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and set a $165.00 target price on shares of Kimberly-Clark in a research report on Friday, January 24th. Citigroup lowered their price target on Kimberly-Clark from $125.00 to $118.00 and set a “sell” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, January 15th. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Kimberly-Clark from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, March 6th. Finally, Piper Sandler reiterated an “overweight” rating and issued a $158.00 target price (down from $161.00) on shares of Kimberly-Clark in a research note on Wednesday, January 29th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have given a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $144.85.

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.