Kimberly-Clark Corporation $KMB Position Lowered by Royal Fund Management LLC

Royal Fund Management LLC reduced its stake in Kimberly-Clark Corporation (NASDAQ:KMB) by 17.8% during the third quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 58,223 shares of the company’s stock after selling 12,620 shares during the period. Royal Fund Management LLC’s holdings in Kimberly-Clark were worth $5,673,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in KMB. BlackRock Inc. bought a new position in Kimberly-Clark during the second quarter valued at about $3,547,915,000. Thornburg Investment Management Inc. purchased a new stake in Kimberly-Clark during the second quarter worth about $632,373,000. Bank of New York Mellon Corp bought a new stake in Kimberly-Clark in the second quarter worth about $239,612,000. Legal & General Group Plc bought a new stake in Kimberly-Clark in the second quarter worth about $223,668,000. Finally, Diamond Hill Capital Management LLC Investment Advisor bought a new stake in Kimberly-Clark in the second quarter worth about $188,902,000. 76.29% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research firms have weighed in on KMB. Barclays boosted 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. Zacks Research lowered shares of Kimberly-Clark from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a research note on Tuesday. UBS Group raised their price target on shares of Kimberly-Clark from $115.00 to $116.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, August 5th. Bank of America lowered their price target on shares of Kimberly-Clark from $122.00 to $120.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, September 25th. Finally, Seaport Research Partners upgraded Kimberly-Clark to a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, August 4th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, four have issued a Buy rating, ten have issued a Hold rating and two have issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $116.50.

Kimberly-Clark Stock Up 5.3%

KMB stock opened at $112.32 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.45, a quick ratio of 0.69 and a current ratio of 0.91. The company has a market capitalization of $37.36 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.10, a PEG ratio of 5.77 and a beta of 0.25. Kimberly-Clark Corporation has a fifty-two week low of $92.42 and a fifty-two week high of $123.09. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $102.70 and a 200-day moving average of $102.98.

Kimberly-Clark (NASDAQ:KMB) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, August 4th. The company reported $1.80 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.01 by ($0.21). Kimberly-Clark had a return on equity of 143.92% and a net margin of 11.79%. The firm had revenue of $4.19 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.22 billion. During the same period last year, the business posted $1.92 EPS. The company’s revenue was up .6% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Kimberly-Clark Corporation will post 6.83 earnings per share for the current year.

Kimberly-Clark Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, October 2nd. Shareholders of record on Friday, September 4th were given a dividend of $1.28 per share. This represents a $5.12 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.6%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, September 4th. Kimberly-Clark’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 87.07%.

Kimberly-Clark Profile

Kimberly-Clark Corporation (NASDAQ:KMB) is a global consumer products company that develops and markets personal care, tissue and professional hygiene products. Its portfolio includes products for babies and children, feminine care, adult care, family care and workplace hygiene.

The company’s well-known brands include Huggies diapers and wipes, Kleenex facial tissue, Cottonelle bathroom tissue, Scott toilet paper and paper towels, Kotex feminine care products, and Depend, Poise and GoodNites products.