Westpac Banking Corp Decreases Stock Holdings in Kimberly-Clark Corporation $KMB

Westpac Banking Corp lowered its stake in shares of Kimberly-Clark Corporation (NASDAQ:KMB) by 96.2% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm owned 2,052 shares of the company’s stock after selling 52,083 shares during the period. Westpac Banking Corp’s holdings in Kimberly-Clark were worth $198,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in KMB. Oslo Pensjonsforsikring AS purchased a new position in shares of Kimberly-Clark during the first quarter valued at approximately $357,000. Cassaday & Co Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in Kimberly-Clark in the first quarter worth approximately $80,000. Johnson Financial Group Inc. grew its position in Kimberly-Clark by 47.3% in the 1st quarter. Johnson Financial Group Inc. now owns 12,064 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,176,000 after purchasing an additional 3,873 shares during the period. Parallel Advisors LLC raised its stake in Kimberly-Clark by 68.1% during the 1st quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC now owns 5,028 shares of the company’s stock valued at $485,000 after buying an additional 2,037 shares during the last quarter. Finally, KBC Group NV raised its stake in Kimberly-Clark by 459.9% during the 1st quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 1,695,768 shares of the company’s stock valued at $163,591,000 after buying an additional 1,392,873 shares during the last quarter. 76.29% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Kimberly-Clark Trading Down 1.4%

Shares of NASDAQ:KMB opened at $107.31 on Friday. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $104.11 and a 200 day moving average of $101.94. The company has a market cap of $35.62 billion, a PE ratio of 16.85, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.85 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. The company has a current ratio of 0.77, a quick ratio of 0.55 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.38.

Kimberly-Clark (NASDAQ:KMB) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, April 28th. The company reported $1.97 EPS for the quarter, topping 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 company had revenue of $4.16 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.09 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $1.93 EPS. The firm’s revenue was up 2.7% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities research analysts expect that Kimberly-Clark Corporation will post 7.47 EPS for the current year.

Kimberly-Clark Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, July 2nd. Stockholders of record on Friday, June 5th were given a dividend of $1.28 per share. This represents a $5.12 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.8%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, June 5th. Kimberly-Clark’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 80.38%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Kimberly-Clark

In related news, VP Andrew Scribner sold 4,095 shares of Kimberly-Clark stock in a transaction 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 legal filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, insider Katy Chen sold 1,596 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on 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 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. Insiders have sold a total of 7,096 shares of company stock worth $689,687 over the last 90 days. Insiders own 0.75% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

KMB has been the topic of a number of research reports. Bank of America dropped their price target on Kimberly-Clark from $130.00 to $120.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, April 10th. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “hold (c-)” rating on shares of Kimberly-Clark in a research report on Wednesday, June 24th. Barclays increased their target price on Kimberly-Clark from $101.00 to $115.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Tuesday. Piper Sandler raised their target price on Kimberly-Clark from $115.00 to $121.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, June 17th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price target on Kimberly-Clark from $100.00 to $110.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 8th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, eleven have assigned a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Kimberly-Clark presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $117.93.

About Kimberly-Clark

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.