Kimberly-Clark Co. (NYSE:KMB) Shares Sold by Hussman Strategic Advisors Inc.

Hussman Strategic Advisors Inc. lessened its stake in shares of Kimberly-Clark Co. (NYSE:KMB) by 25.0% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 12,600 shares of the company’s stock after selling 4,200 shares during the quarter. Hussman Strategic Advisors Inc.’s holdings in Kimberly-Clark were worth $1,651,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Creative Planning lifted its stake in shares of Kimberly-Clark by 1.3% during the 3rd quarter. Creative Planning now owns 75,147 shares of the company’s stock worth $10,692,000 after purchasing an additional 943 shares during the period. Foundations Investment Advisors LLC lifted its stake in shares of Kimberly-Clark by 7.3% during the 3rd quarter. Foundations Investment Advisors LLC now owns 7,643 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,087,000 after purchasing an additional 520 shares during the period. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC lifted its stake in shares of Kimberly-Clark by 7.8% during the 3rd quarter. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC now owns 49,232 shares of the company’s stock worth $7,005,000 after purchasing an additional 3,548 shares during the period. My Legacy Advisors LLC lifted its stake in shares of Kimberly-Clark by 4.6% during the 3rd quarter. My Legacy Advisors LLC now owns 1,741 shares of the company’s stock worth $248,000 after purchasing an additional 76 shares during the period. Finally, Eastern Bank lifted its stake in shares of Kimberly-Clark by 230.0% during the 3rd quarter. Eastern Bank now owns 10,640 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,514,000 after purchasing an additional 7,416 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 76.29% of the company’s stock.

Kimberly-Clark Stock Up 1.6 %

Shares of NYSE KMB opened at $137.85 on Thursday. Kimberly-Clark Co. has a 12-month low of $118.62 and a 12-month high of $149.30. The company has a market cap of $45.72 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.26, a P/E/G ratio of 4.34 and a beta of 0.41. The company has a current ratio of 0.80, a quick ratio of 0.54 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 7.05. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $129.89 and a 200 day moving average price of $136.45.

Kimberly-Clark (NYSE:KMB) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, January 28th. The company reported $1.50 earnings per share for the quarter, meeting the consensus estimate of $1.50. Kimberly-Clark had a return on equity of 201.43% and a net margin of 12.69%. Research analysts anticipate that Kimberly-Clark Co. will post 7.51 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Kimberly-Clark Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, April 2nd. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 7th will be paid a dividend of $1.26 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 7th. This is an increase from Kimberly-Clark’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.22. This represents a $5.04 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.66%. Kimberly-Clark’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 64.64%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts have weighed in on KMB shares. Barclays reduced their price target on Kimberly-Clark from $144.00 to $132.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, January 17th. Wells Fargo & Company cut their target price on Kimberly-Clark from $140.00 to $130.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, January 7th. Piper Sandler reaffirmed an “overweight” rating and issued a $158.00 target price (down from $161.00) on shares of Kimberly-Clark in a research report on Wednesday, January 29th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their target price on Kimberly-Clark from $140.00 to $124.00 and set an “underweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, January 16th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and issued a $165.00 target price on shares of Kimberly-Clark in a research report on Friday, January 24th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have given a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $143.64.

Insider Activity

In other news, VP Andrew Drexler sold 3,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, November 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $139.01, for a total transaction of $417,030.00. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now directly owns 5,053 shares in the company, valued at $702,417.53. This trade represents a 37.25 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Insiders own 0.62% of the company’s stock.

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.