Kimberly-Clark Co. (NYSE:KMB) Shares Purchased by ING Groep NV

ING Groep NV lifted its stake in Kimberly-Clark Co. (NYSE:KMB) by 4.7% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 76,416 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 3,398 shares during the period. ING Groep NV’s holdings in Kimberly-Clark were worth $10,014,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

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

Kimberly-Clark Trading Up 0.9 %

Shares of KMB stock opened at $140.28 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $46.53 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.58, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.42 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. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $130.19 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $136.48.

Kimberly-Clark (NYSE:KMB) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, January 28th. The company reported $1.50 earnings per share for the quarter, meeting analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.50. Kimberly-Clark had a net margin of 12.69% and a return on equity of 201.43%. On average, analysts anticipate that Kimberly-Clark Co. will post 7.5 EPS for the current year.

Kimberly-Clark Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, April 2nd. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 7th will be given a dividend of $1.26 per share. This represents a $5.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.59%. This is a boost from Kimberly-Clark’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.22. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 7th. Kimberly-Clark’s payout ratio is 64.64%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts have weighed in on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their target price 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. Piper Sandler reiterated an “overweight” rating and set a $158.00 price target (down from $161.00) on shares of Kimberly-Clark in a report on Wednesday, January 29th. StockNews.com downgraded shares of Kimberly-Clark from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Saturday, February 15th. UBS Group lifted their price target on shares of Kimberly-Clark from $132.00 to $134.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 29th. Finally, Barclays lowered their price target on shares of Kimberly-Clark from $144.00 to $132.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Friday, January 17th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have given a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price 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.