Kimberly-Clark Co. (NYSE:KMB) Shares Bought by Arete Wealth Advisors LLC

Arete Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its position in shares of Kimberly-Clark Co. (NYSE:KMB) by 84.7% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 4,923 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 2,257 shares during the period. Arete Wealth Advisors LLC’s holdings in Kimberly-Clark were worth $644,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

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

Kimberly-Clark Trading Down 5.1 %

NYSE:KMB opened at $137.76 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $45.69 billion, a PE ratio of 18.25, a P/E/G ratio of 4.46 and a beta of 0.37. The business’s 50 day moving average is $137.64 and its two-hundred day moving average is $135.99. 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 $123.84 and a 52 week high of $150.45.

Kimberly-Clark (NYSE:KMB) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, January 28th. The company reported $1.50 earnings per share (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, analysts predict that Kimberly-Clark Co. will post 7.5 EPS for the current year.

Kimberly-Clark Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, April 2nd. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 7th were issued a $1.26 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, March 7th. This represents a $5.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.66%. This is a boost from Kimberly-Clark’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.22. Kimberly-Clark’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 66.75%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

KMB has been the topic of several recent research reports. Barclays upped their price target on shares of Kimberly-Clark from $138.00 to $144.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Thursday, March 27th. Wells Fargo & Company increased their target price on Kimberly-Clark from $130.00 to $140.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Friday, March 28th. Citigroup decreased 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. TD Cowen lowered shares of Kimberly-Clark from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and set a $145.00 price objective on the stock. in a research note on Wednesday, January 8th. Finally, UBS Group upped 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. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have assigned a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $144.85.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, VP Andrew Drexler sold 2,500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $140.00, for a total transaction of $350,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now owns 2,553 shares in the company, valued at $357,420. The trade was a 49.48 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. 0.64% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

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.