Sarasin & Partners LLP Lowers Stock Position in Kimberly-Clark Co. (NYSE:KMB)

Sarasin & Partners LLP cut its stake in shares of Kimberly-Clark Co. (NYSE:KMB) by 58.3% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 411,684 shares of the company’s stock after selling 576,610 shares during the quarter. Sarasin & Partners LLP owned about 0.12% of Kimberly-Clark worth $58,574,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Strong Tower Advisory Services grew its stake in shares of Kimberly-Clark by 14.8% during the 1st quarter. Strong Tower Advisory Services now owns 16,337 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,198,000 after purchasing an additional 2,110 shares during the period. NBC Securities Inc. lifted its holdings in Kimberly-Clark by 106,600.0% in the 1st quarter. NBC Securities Inc. now owns 7,469 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,062,000 after purchasing an additional 7,462 shares in the last quarter. Czech National Bank raised its holdings in shares of Kimberly-Clark by 5.4% during the 1st quarter. Czech National Bank now owns 76,182 shares of the company’s stock worth $10,835,000 after acquiring an additional 3,875 shares in the last quarter. Mirador Capital Partners LP purchased a new stake in shares of Kimberly-Clark during the 1st quarter worth approximately $266,000. Finally, Rhumbline Advisers increased its position in shares of Kimberly-Clark by 3.7% during the 1st quarter. Rhumbline Advisers now owns 755,579 shares of the company’s stock valued at $107,458,000 after purchasing an additional 26,851 shares during the last quarter. 76.29% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Kimberly-Clark Price Performance

NYSE:KMB opened at $143.90 on Monday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.54, a current ratio of 0.80 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 7.05. The company has a market capitalization of $47.75 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.06, a P/E/G ratio of 4.46 and a beta of 0.35. Kimberly-Clark Co. has a 52 week low of $124.10 and a 52 week high of $150.45. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $137.66 and its two-hundred day moving average is $135.38.

Kimberly-Clark (NYSE:KMB) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 22nd. The company reported $1.93 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.89 by $0.04. The company had revenue of $4.84 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.90 billion. Kimberly-Clark had a return on equity of 201.43% and a net margin of 12.69%. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $2.01 EPS. Equities analysts expect that Kimberly-Clark Co. will post 7.5 EPS for the current year.

Kimberly-Clark Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, July 2nd. Investors of record on Friday, June 6th will be given a $1.26 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, June 6th. This represents a $5.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.50%. Kimberly-Clark’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 68.66%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts have weighed in on KMB shares. Wall Street Zen cut Kimberly-Clark from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, April 24th. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price objective on Kimberly-Clark from $130.00 to $140.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Friday, March 28th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price objective on Kimberly-Clark from $124.00 to $131.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a research note on Friday, April 11th. UBS Group raised their target price on Kimberly-Clark from $134.00 to $146.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, April 17th. Finally, Evercore ISI dropped their price objective on Kimberly-Clark from $168.00 to $155.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, April 23rd. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have issued a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $145.08.

Insider Activity at Kimberly-Clark

In related news, insider Katy Chen sold 1,794 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, April 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $130.74, for a total value of $234,547.56. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 3,098 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $405,032.52. This represents a 36.67% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Insiders own 0.64% of the company’s stock.

Kimberly-Clark 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.