Kentucky Retirement Systems Insurance Trust Fund Grows Stock Holdings in Kimberly-Clark Co. (NYSE:KMB)

Kentucky Retirement Systems Insurance Trust Fund grew its holdings in Kimberly-Clark Co. (NYSE:KMB) by 35.5% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 13,515 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 3,543 shares during the period. Kentucky Retirement Systems Insurance Trust Fund’s holdings in Kimberly-Clark were worth $1,771,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other large investors have also made changes to their positions in the business. Davidson Trust Co. boosted its holdings in shares of Kimberly-Clark by 16.2% in the 4th quarter. Davidson Trust Co. now owns 1,756 shares of the company’s stock valued at $230,000 after acquiring an additional 245 shares during the last quarter. Kestra Investment Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Kimberly-Clark by 86.9% in the 4th quarter. Kestra Investment Management LLC now owns 7,514 shares of the company’s stock valued at $985,000 after acquiring an additional 3,493 shares during the last quarter. Atria Wealth Solutions Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Kimberly-Clark by 13.5% in the 4th quarter. Atria Wealth Solutions Inc. now owns 61,930 shares of the company’s stock valued at $8,178,000 after acquiring an additional 7,363 shares during the last quarter. Kornitzer Capital Management Inc. KS lifted its stake in shares of Kimberly-Clark by 1.6% in the 4th quarter. Kornitzer Capital Management Inc. KS now owns 292,932 shares of the company’s stock valued at $38,386,000 after purchasing an additional 4,688 shares during the period. Finally, Venturi Wealth Management LLC lifted its stake in shares of Kimberly-Clark by 16.5% in the 4th quarter. Venturi Wealth Management LLC now owns 1,410 shares of the company’s stock valued at $185,000 after purchasing an additional 200 shares during the period. 76.29% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Kimberly-Clark Price Performance

Shares of NYSE KMB opened at $135.66 on Wednesday. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $129.84 and a 200-day simple moving average of $136.49. The stock has a market capitalization of $45.24 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.97, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.12 and a beta of 0.41. 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 Co. has a 52 week low of $118.62 and a 52 week high of $149.30.

Kimberly-Clark (NYSE:KMB) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, January 28th. The company reported $1.50 EPS for the quarter, meeting analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.50. Kimberly-Clark had a net margin of 12.69% and a return on equity of 201.43%. On average, equities analysts predict that Kimberly-Clark Co. will post 7.51 earnings per share 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. Investors of record on Friday, March 7th will be issued a $1.26 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 7th. This represents a $5.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.72%. This is a positive change from Kimberly-Clark’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.22. Kimberly-Clark’s dividend payout ratio is currently 64.64%.

Insider Activity at Kimberly-Clark

In related news, VP Andrew Drexler sold 3,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, November 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $139.01, for a total value of $417,030.00. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now owns 5,053 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $702,417.53. This represents a 37.25 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. 0.62% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

KMB has been the subject of several analyst reports. TD Cowen cut shares of Kimberly-Clark from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and set a $145.00 target price for the company. in a research note on Wednesday, January 8th. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their target price on shares of Kimberly-Clark from $140.00 to $130.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, January 7th. Royal Bank of Canada reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $165.00 target price on shares of Kimberly-Clark in a research note on Friday, January 24th. UBS Group boosted their target price on shares of Kimberly-Clark from $132.00 to $134.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 29th. 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 analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have given a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Kimberly-Clark has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $143.64.

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.