Kimberly-Clark Corporation $KMB Shares Sold by North Star Asset Management Inc.

North Star Asset Management Inc. reduced its position in shares of Kimberly-Clark Corporation (NASDAQ:KMB) by 5.2% during the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The fund owned 101,667 shares of the company’s stock after selling 5,579 shares during the quarter. North Star Asset Management Inc.’s holdings in Kimberly-Clark were worth $10,257,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of KMB. Cloud Capital Management LLC acquired a new position in Kimberly-Clark during the third quarter worth about $25,000. Darwin Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in Kimberly-Clark during the second quarter worth about $27,000. Eagle Bay Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Kimberly-Clark during the fourth quarter worth about $28,000. Newbridge Financial Services Group Inc. grew its holdings in Kimberly-Clark by 96.6% during the fourth quarter. Newbridge Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 285 shares of the company’s stock worth $29,000 after acquiring an additional 140 shares during the period. Finally, Entrust Financial LLC acquired a new position in Kimberly-Clark during the fourth quarter worth about $32,000. 76.29% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Kimberly-Clark Trading Up 0.4%

Shares of KMB opened at $99.14 on Friday. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $97.70 and its 200 day moving average price is $101.39. The stock has a market capitalization of $32.91 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.56, a P/E/G ratio of 4.45 and a beta of 0.29. Kimberly-Clark Corporation has a 1-year low of $92.42 and a 1-year high of $144.30. The company has a current ratio of 0.77, a quick ratio of 0.55 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.38.

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

Kimberly-Clark Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, July 2nd. Shareholders of record on Friday, June 5th will be paid a dividend of $1.28 per share. This represents a $5.12 annualized dividend and a yield of 5.2%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, June 5th. Kimberly-Clark’s payout ratio is 80.38%.

Insider Activity

In other Kimberly-Clark news, VP Andrew Scribner sold 4,095 shares of Kimberly-Clark stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, May 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $98.00, for a total transaction of $401,310.00. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, insider Katy Chen sold 1,596 shares of Kimberly-Clark stock in a transaction dated Monday, May 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $95.34, for a total value of $152,162.64. Following the transaction, the insider directly owned 8,362 shares in the company, valued at approximately $797,233.08. This trade represents a 16.03% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. In the last ninety days, insiders have sold 7,096 shares of company stock worth $689,687. Company insiders own 0.75% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms recently issued reports on KMB. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their target price on Kimberly-Clark from $110.00 to $100.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, April 8th. Zacks Research cut Kimberly-Clark from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 3rd. UBS Group lifted their price target on Kimberly-Clark from $105.00 to $106.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 29th. Weiss Ratings reissued a “hold (c-)” rating on shares of Kimberly-Clark in a research note on Friday, March 27th. Finally, Bank of America dropped their price target on Kimberly-Clark from $130.00 to $120.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, April 10th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, eleven have given a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Kimberly-Clark has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $114.93.

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.