Sterling Capital Management LLC Sells 12,189 Shares of Kimberly-Clark Corporation $KMB

Sterling Capital Management LLC decreased its holdings in shares of Kimberly-Clark Corporation (NASDAQ:KMB) by 76.1% during the first quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm owned 3,828 shares of the company’s stock after selling 12,189 shares during the period. Sterling Capital Management LLC’s holdings in Kimberly-Clark were worth $369,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of KMB. Sugar Maple Asset Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Kimberly-Clark by 83.8% in the 1st quarter. Sugar Maple Asset Management LLC now owns 4,062 shares of the company’s stock worth $392,000 after buying an additional 1,852 shares in the last quarter. Welch Group LLC raised its position in shares of Kimberly-Clark by 37.8% during the 1st quarter. Welch Group LLC now owns 447,054 shares of the company’s stock valued at $43,127,000 after buying an additional 122,577 shares in the last quarter. Wealth Effects LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Kimberly-Clark during the 1st quarter valued at about $333,000. Poehling Capital Management INC. bought a new position in shares of Kimberly-Clark in the 1st quarter valued at about $1,465,000. Finally, Grey Ledge Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Kimberly-Clark by 2.7% in the 1st quarter. Grey Ledge Advisors LLC now owns 8,491 shares of the company’s stock valued at $819,000 after acquiring an additional 223 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 76.29% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

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

Kimberly-Clark Price Performance

Shares of KMB opened at $114.72 on Friday. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $100.78 and a 200-day moving average price of $101.12. The company has a current ratio of 0.77, a quick ratio of 0.55 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.38. The firm has a market capitalization of $38.08 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.01, a P/E/G ratio of 5.14 and a beta of 0.26. Kimberly-Clark Corporation has a 12-month low of $92.42 and a 12-month high of $137.46.

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

Kimberly-Clark Announces Dividend

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

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages have weighed in on KMB. Weiss Ratings reissued a “hold (c-)” rating on shares of Kimberly-Clark in a research note on Wednesday, June 24th. UBS Group raised their price objective on Kimberly-Clark from $105.00 to $106.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 29th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft dropped their target price on Kimberly-Clark from $110.00 to $109.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a report on Monday, March 30th. Piper Sandler increased their price target on Kimberly-Clark from $115.00 to $121.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, June 17th. Finally, Bank of America lowered their price target on Kimberly-Clark from $130.00 to $120.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, April 10th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, eleven have given a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Kimberly-Clark has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $115.43.

Kimberly-Clark Profile

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.