Lazard Asset Management LLC Has $12.58 Million Holdings in Kimberly-Clark Corporation $KMB

Lazard Asset Management LLC lessened its holdings in Kimberly-Clark Corporation (NASDAQ:KMB) by 45.5% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 130,407 shares of the company’s stock after selling 108,761 shares during the quarter. Lazard Asset Management LLC’s holdings in Kimberly-Clark were worth $12,580,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Ally Financial Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Kimberly-Clark during the fourth quarter worth $1,009,000. Westpac Banking Corp lifted its stake in Kimberly-Clark by 25.0% in the fourth quarter. Westpac Banking Corp now owns 54,135 shares of the company’s stock valued at $5,462,000 after buying an additional 10,811 shares during the period. Oddo BHF Asset Management Sas boosted its holdings in Kimberly-Clark by 29.6% during the fourth quarter. Oddo BHF Asset Management Sas now owns 61,795 shares of the company’s stock worth $6,234,000 after buying an additional 14,115 shares during the last quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA boosted its holdings in Kimberly-Clark by 50.4% during the fourth quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 7,839,572 shares of the company’s stock worth $790,934,000 after buying an additional 2,628,206 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Fox Run Management L.L.C. acquired a new position in shares of Kimberly-Clark during the 4th quarter worth about $1,047,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 76.29% of the company’s stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Kimberly-Clark news, insider Katy Chen sold 1,596 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, May 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $95.34, for a total transaction of $152,162.64. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider owned 8,362 shares in the company, valued at approximately $797,233.08. This represents a 16.03% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. Also, VP Andrew Scribner sold 4,095 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, May 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $98.00, for a total value of $401,310.00. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. 0.75% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Kimberly-Clark Price Performance

NASDAQ KMB opened at $113.21 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.38, a quick ratio of 0.55 and a current ratio of 0.77. The stock has a market cap of $37.58 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.77, a PEG ratio of 5.07 and a beta of 0.26. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $105.33 and a 200 day simple moving average of $102.33. Kimberly-Clark Corporation has a 52-week low of $92.42 and a 52-week high of $137.46.

Kimberly-Clark (NASDAQ:KMB) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 28th. The company reported $1.97 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.93 by $0.04. Kimberly-Clark had a net margin of 12.80% and a return on equity of 152.79%. The firm had revenue of $4.16 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.09 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $1.93 earnings per share. The business’s revenue was up 2.7% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts anticipate that Kimberly-Clark Corporation will post 7.47 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Kimberly-Clark Announces Dividend

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

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

KMB has been the subject of a number of recent analyst reports. Piper Sandler upped their price target on Kimberly-Clark from $115.00 to $121.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, June 17th. Weiss Ratings upgraded shares of Kimberly-Clark from a “hold (c-)” rating to a “hold (c)” rating in a report on Tuesday. Barclays upped their target price on shares of Kimberly-Clark from $101.00 to $115.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 21st. UBS Group lifted their price target on shares of Kimberly-Clark from $106.00 to $115.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, July 16th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company upped their price objective on shares of Kimberly-Clark from $100.00 to $110.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 8th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, eleven have assigned a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $117.93.

Kimberly-Clark Company 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.