Handelsbanken Fonder AB Lowers Holdings in Kimberly-Clark Corporation $KMB

Handelsbanken Fonder AB decreased its holdings in shares of Kimberly-Clark Corporation (NASDAQ:KMB) by 7.1% in the 2nd quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The fund owned 144,089 shares of the company’s stock after selling 11,043 shares during the quarter. Handelsbanken Fonder AB’s holdings in Kimberly-Clark were worth $15,817,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Godfrey Financial Associates Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Kimberly-Clark during the 4th quarter worth $25,000. Darwin Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in Kimberly-Clark in the 2nd quarter valued at about $27,000. CrossGen Wealth LLC acquired a new position in Kimberly-Clark in the fourth quarter valued at about $27,000. Motiv8 Investments LLC purchased a new position in Kimberly-Clark during the fourth quarter worth about $31,000. Finally, Entrust Financial LLC purchased a new position in Kimberly-Clark during the fourth quarter worth about $32,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 76.29% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms have recently issued reports on KMB. Barclays boosted their price target 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 target price on shares of Kimberly-Clark from $115.00 to $116.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, August 5th. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their target price on Kimberly-Clark from $100.00 to $110.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 8th. Piper Sandler raised their price target 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, Freedom Capital raised Kimberly-Clark from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, August 4th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, four have assigned a Buy rating, eleven have given a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Kimberly-Clark presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $117.93.

Kimberly-Clark Price Performance

Kimberly-Clark stock opened at $110.70 on Friday. The company’s 50 day moving average is $107.87 and its two-hundred day moving average is $103.08. The firm has a market cap of $36.82 billion, a PE ratio of 18.83, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 5.18 and a beta of 0.26. The company has a quick ratio of 0.69, a current ratio of 0.91 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.45. Kimberly-Clark Corporation has a 52-week low of $92.42 and a 52-week high of $136.17.

Kimberly-Clark (NASDAQ:KMB) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, August 4th. The company reported $1.80 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.01 by ($0.21). Kimberly-Clark had a net margin of 11.79% and a return on equity of 143.92%. The company had revenue of $4.19 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.22 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $1.92 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was up .6% on a year-over-year basis. On average, research analysts expect that Kimberly-Clark Corporation will post 7.43 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Kimberly-Clark Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, October 2nd. Investors of record on Friday, September 4th will be paid a $1.28 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, September 4th. This represents a $5.12 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.6%. Kimberly-Clark’s payout ratio is currently 87.07%.

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.