QRG Capital Management Inc. Raises Position in Kimberly-Clark Corporation $KMB

QRG Capital Management Inc. increased its stake in Kimberly-Clark Corporation (NASDAQ:KMB) by 20.7% during the first quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 81,484 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 13,959 shares during the quarter. QRG Capital Management Inc.’s holdings in Kimberly-Clark were worth $7,861,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of KMB. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its position in Kimberly-Clark by 0.8% in the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 40,846,734 shares of the company’s stock worth $4,121,027,000 after buying an additional 315,981 shares during the last quarter. State Street Corp lifted its position in shares of Kimberly-Clark by 1.4% during the 4th quarter. State Street Corp now owns 21,125,118 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,157,746,000 after buying an additional 294,228 shares during the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. grew its stake in shares of Kimberly-Clark by 2.6% during the 4th quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 11,917,154 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,202,322,000 after acquiring an additional 299,382 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Kimberly-Clark by 0.8% during the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 8,322,198 shares of the company’s stock worth $836,216,000 after acquiring an additional 65,619 shares during the period. Finally, Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA increased its holdings in Kimberly-Clark by 50.4% in the 4th quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 7,839,572 shares of the company’s stock worth $790,934,000 after acquiring an additional 2,628,206 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 76.29% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity

In related news, insider Katy Chen sold 1,596 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, May 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $95.34, for a total value of $152,162.64. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider directly owned 8,362 shares in the company, valued at $797,233.08. The trade was a 16.03% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. Also, VP Andrew Scribner sold 4,095 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, May 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $98.00, for a total value of $401,310.00. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders sold 7,096 shares of company stock valued at $689,687 over the last ninety days. Corporate insiders own 0.75% of the company’s stock.

Kimberly-Clark Price Performance

Shares of Kimberly-Clark stock opened at $114.72 on Friday. The company’s 50 day moving average price is $100.78 and its 200-day moving average price is $101.12. Kimberly-Clark Corporation has a 52-week low of $92.42 and a 52-week high of $137.46. The stock has a market capitalization of $38.08 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.01, a P/E/G ratio of 5.14 and a beta of 0.26. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.38, a quick ratio of 0.55 and a current ratio of 0.77.

Kimberly-Clark (NASDAQ:KMB) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, April 28th. The company reported $1.97 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.93 by $0.04. Kimberly-Clark had a return on equity of 152.79% and a net margin of 12.80%.The firm had revenue of $4.16 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.09 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $1.93 earnings per share. The business’s revenue was up 2.7% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts forecast that Kimberly-Clark Corporation will post 7.48 EPS for the current year.

Kimberly-Clark Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, July 2nd. Stockholders of record on Friday, June 5th were given a $1.28 dividend. This represents a $5.12 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.5%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, June 5th. Kimberly-Clark’s payout ratio is currently 80.38%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts have commented on the stock. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “hold (c-)” rating on shares of Kimberly-Clark in a report on Wednesday, June 24th. UBS Group lifted their target price on shares of Kimberly-Clark from $105.00 to $106.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 29th. Piper Sandler upped their price target on shares of Kimberly-Clark from $115.00 to $121.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, June 17th. Bank of America cut their price target on Kimberly-Clark from $130.00 to $120.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Friday, April 10th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company cut their price objective on shares of Kimberly-Clark from $110.00 to $100.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, April 8th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, eleven have assigned a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Kimberly-Clark has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $115.43.

About Kimberly-Clark

Kimberly-Clark Corporation is a U.S.-based multinational manufacturer of personal care and consumer tissue products. The company develops, produces and markets a range of consumer brands and professional products, including facial and bathroom tissues, disposable diapers and training pants, feminine care, incontinence products and workplace hygiene solutions. Known for consumer-facing names such as Kleenex, Huggies, Kotex, Cottonelle and Scott, as well as professional offerings under Kimberly-Clark Professional and KleenGuard, the company supplies goods to retail, healthcare and institutional customers.

Founded in 1872 in Neenah, Wisconsin, Kimberly-Clark has expanded from its 19th-century paper-making roots into a global household and workplace products company.