Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. Buys 30,376 Shares of Kimberly-Clark Co. (NYSE:KMB)

Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. boosted its stake in shares of Kimberly-Clark Co. (NYSE:KMB) by 5.7% in the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund owned 564,182 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 30,376 shares during the quarter. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd.’s holdings in Kimberly-Clark were worth $73,208,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Migdal Insurance & Financial Holdings Ltd. bought a new position in Kimberly-Clark during the 4th quarter valued at about $25,000. Marshall Investment Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Kimberly-Clark during the fourth quarter worth approximately $25,000. Golden State Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Kimberly-Clark in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $32,000. Strategic Financial Concepts LLC acquired a new position in shares of Kimberly-Clark in the 4th quarter worth approximately $33,000. Finally, Roxbury Financial LLC bought a new stake in Kimberly-Clark during the 4th quarter worth approximately $33,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 76.29% of the company’s stock.

Kimberly-Clark Trading Up 0.1 %

NYSE KMB opened at $140.73 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 7.05, a current ratio of 0.80 and a quick ratio of 0.54. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $136.12 and its 200-day moving average is $136.05. Kimberly-Clark Co. has a one year low of $123.84 and a one year high of $150.45. The firm has a market cap of $46.67 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.64, a P/E/G ratio of 4.46 and a beta of 0.36.

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%. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Kimberly-Clark Co. will post 7.5 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Kimberly-Clark Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, April 2nd. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 7th will be paid a $1.26 dividend. This is an increase from Kimberly-Clark’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.22. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 7th. This represents a $5.04 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.58%. Kimberly-Clark’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 66.75%.

Insider Activity

In related news, VP Andrew Drexler sold 10,838 shares of Kimberly-Clark stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $141.00, for a total value of $1,528,158.00. Following the sale, the vice president now owns 7,720 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,088,520. This trade represents a 58.40 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 0.64% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages have recently commented on KMB. Piper Sandler restated an “overweight” rating and set a $158.00 target price (down previously from $161.00) on shares of Kimberly-Clark in a report on Wednesday, January 29th. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Kimberly-Clark from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, March 6th. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price target on shares of Kimberly-Clark from $130.00 to $140.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Friday. UBS Group boosted their price objective on shares of Kimberly-Clark from $132.00 to $134.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 29th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $165.00 price objective on shares of Kimberly-Clark in a research report on Friday, January 24th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have issued a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Kimberly-Clark presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $144.85.

Kimberly-Clark Company Profile

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.