Arete Wealth Advisors LLC Boosts Stock Position in Kimberly-Clark Co. (NYSE:KMB)

Arete Wealth Advisors LLC raised its stake in Kimberly-Clark Co. (NYSE:KMB) by 84.7% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 4,923 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 2,257 shares during the quarter. Arete Wealth Advisors LLC’s holdings in Kimberly-Clark were worth $644,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

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

Kimberly-Clark Stock Down 5.1 %

Shares of NYSE:KMB opened at $137.76 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $45.69 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.25, a P/E/G ratio of 4.46 and a beta of 0.37. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $137.64 and its 200-day simple moving average is $135.99. Kimberly-Clark Co. has a 52-week low of $123.84 and a 52-week high of $150.45. 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 (NYSE:KMB) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, January 28th. The company reported $1.50 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, hitting the consensus estimate of $1.50. Kimberly-Clark had a net margin of 12.69% and a return on equity of 201.43%. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Kimberly-Clark Co. will post 7.5 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Kimberly-Clark Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, April 2nd. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 7th were paid a $1.26 dividend. This is a boost from Kimberly-Clark’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.22. This represents a $5.04 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.66%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, March 7th. Kimberly-Clark’s payout ratio is presently 66.75%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts have recently commented on the company. TD Cowen cut 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. UBS Group raised their target price on Kimberly-Clark from $132.00 to $134.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 29th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price target on shares of Kimberly-Clark from $140.00 to $124.00 and set an “underweight” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, January 16th. Citigroup decreased their price objective on shares of Kimberly-Clark from $125.00 to $118.00 and set a “sell” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, January 15th. Finally, Barclays increased their target price on shares of Kimberly-Clark from $138.00 to $144.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Thursday, March 27th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have issued a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $144.85.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, VP Andrew Drexler sold 2,500 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Friday, February 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $140.00, for a total value of $350,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 2,553 shares in the company, valued at approximately $357,420. This represents a 49.48 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 0.64% of the company’s stock.

Kimberly-Clark Company 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.