Brokerages Set Kimberly-Clark Co. (NYSE:KMB) Price Target at $132.43

Shares of Kimberly-Clark Co. (NYSE:KMB) have been given a consensus rating of “Hold” by the twelve ratings firms that are currently covering the firm, MarketBeat.com reports. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, six have assigned a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the company. The average 12-month price objective among brokerages that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $131.85.

KMB has been the subject of a number of analyst reports. StockNews.com raised Kimberly-Clark from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, April 11th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft lifted their price target on Kimberly-Clark from $127.00 to $132.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, March 28th. The Goldman Sachs Group assumed coverage on shares of Kimberly-Clark in a research report on Friday, March 1st. They set a “buy” rating and a $135.00 price objective on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company upped their target price on shares of Kimberly-Clark from $125.00 to $131.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Thursday, March 28th. Finally, Barclays raised their price target on shares of Kimberly-Clark from $124.00 to $132.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Friday, April 12th.

Kimberly-Clark Stock Performance

Shares of KMB stock opened at $125.62 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 0.82, a quick ratio of 0.54 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 6.94. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $124.12 and its 200-day moving average price is $122.28. The stock has a market cap of $42.32 billion, a PE ratio of 24.16, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.73 and a beta of 0.40. Kimberly-Clark has a 12 month low of $116.32 and a 12 month high of $147.87.

Kimberly-Clark (NYSE:KMB) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, January 24th. The company reported $1.51 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.53 by ($0.02). Kimberly-Clark had a return on equity of 260.47% and a net margin of 8.63%. The business had revenue of $5 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.99 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $1.54 EPS. Kimberly-Clark’s revenue for the quarter was up .7% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities analysts expect that Kimberly-Clark will post 6.84 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Kimberly-Clark Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, April 2nd. Investors of record on Friday, March 8th were issued a $1.22 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, March 7th. This represents a $4.88 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.88%. This is a positive change from Kimberly-Clark’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.18. Kimberly-Clark’s payout ratio is presently 93.85%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Kimberly-Clark

In other news, insider Tristram Wilkinson sold 3,720 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, January 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $121.00, for a total transaction of $450,120.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 17,229 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,084,709. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. In other Kimberly-Clark news, Director Mark T. Smucker acquired 827 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, January 29th. The stock was purchased at an average price of $120.98 per share, with a total value of $100,050.46. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 827 shares in the company, valued at approximately $100,050.46. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, insider Tristram Wilkinson sold 3,720 shares of Kimberly-Clark stock in a transaction dated Friday, January 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $121.00, for a total value of $450,120.00. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 17,229 shares in the company, valued at $2,084,709. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.62% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in KMB. OFI Invest Asset Management bought a new stake in Kimberly-Clark during the third quarter worth approximately $25,000. Rise Advisors LLC lifted its position in shares of Kimberly-Clark by 926.3% during the first quarter. Rise Advisors LLC now owns 195 shares of the company’s stock worth $25,000 after purchasing an additional 176 shares during the last quarter. DHJJ Financial Advisors Ltd. purchased a new stake in shares of Kimberly-Clark during the third quarter valued at $26,000. Cranbrook Wealth Management LLC grew its stake in Kimberly-Clark by 90.9% in the fourth quarter. Cranbrook Wealth Management LLC now owns 210 shares of the company’s stock worth $26,000 after purchasing an additional 100 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Centerpoint Advisors LLC grew its stake in Kimberly-Clark by 175.0% in the third quarter. Centerpoint Advisors LLC now owns 275 shares of the company’s stock worth $33,000 after purchasing an additional 175 shares in the last quarter. 76.29% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.