Kimberly-Clark Co. (NYSE:KMB) Shares Sold by Sanctuary Advisors LLC

Sanctuary Advisors LLC reduced its stake in shares of Kimberly-Clark Co. (NYSE:KMB) by 4.0% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 63,815 shares of the company’s stock after selling 2,659 shares during the period. Sanctuary Advisors LLC’s holdings in Kimberly-Clark were worth $8,350,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of KMB. Migdal Insurance & Financial Holdings Ltd. acquired a new position in Kimberly-Clark in the fourth quarter worth about $25,000. Darwin Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in Kimberly-Clark during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $29,000. Golden State Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Kimberly-Clark in the 4th quarter worth approximately $32,000. Strategic Financial Concepts LLC bought a new stake in shares of Kimberly-Clark in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $33,000. Finally, Roxbury Financial LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Kimberly-Clark during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $33,000. Institutional investors own 76.29% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity

In related 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 transaction, the vice president now owns 5,053 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $702,417.53. This trade represents a 37.25 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. 0.62% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Kimberly-Clark Price Performance

Shares of NYSE KMB opened at $137.85 on Thursday. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $129.89 and its 200 day simple moving average is $136.45. The stock has a market cap of $45.72 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.26, a P/E/G ratio of 4.25 and a beta of 0.41. The company has a quick ratio of 0.54, a current ratio of 0.80 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 7.05. Kimberly-Clark Co. has a fifty-two week low of $118.62 and a fifty-two week high of $149.30.

Kimberly-Clark (NYSE:KMB) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, January 28th. The company reported $1.50 EPS for the quarter, hitting analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.50. Kimberly-Clark had a net margin of 12.69% and a return on equity of 201.43%. Equities analysts expect that Kimberly-Clark Co. will post 7.51 EPS for the current year.

Kimberly-Clark Increases Dividend

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

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms have commented on KMB. Citigroup decreased their price objective on shares of Kimberly-Clark from $125.00 to $118.00 and set a “sell” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, January 15th. TD Cowen lowered shares of Kimberly-Clark from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and set a $145.00 price target for the company. in a report on Wednesday, January 8th. Royal Bank of Canada reiterated an “outperform” rating and set a $165.00 price objective on shares of Kimberly-Clark in a research note on Friday, January 24th. Barclays decreased their target price on Kimberly-Clark from $144.00 to $132.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, January 17th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price target 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. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have issued a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $143.64.

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.