OLD Republic International Corp Reduces Stock Position in Kimberly-Clark Co. (NYSE:KMB)

OLD Republic International Corp cut its position in shares of Kimberly-Clark Co. (NYSE:KMB) by 1.4% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 383,200 shares of the company’s stock after selling 5,300 shares during the quarter. Kimberly-Clark makes up 1.8% of OLD Republic International Corp’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 29th largest position. OLD Republic International Corp’s holdings in Kimberly-Clark were worth $46,563,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of KMB. FMR LLC grew its position in shares of Kimberly-Clark by 74.9% in the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 2,442,610 shares of the company’s stock valued at $295,189,000 after purchasing an additional 1,046,155 shares during the period. American Century Companies Inc. raised its position in shares of Kimberly-Clark by 14.7% in the 3rd quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 4,996,401 shares of the company’s stock worth $603,815,000 after buying an additional 641,187 shares during the period. Royal Bank of Canada raised its holdings in Kimberly-Clark by 31.4% in the third quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 2,197,184 shares of the company’s stock valued at $265,530,000 after buying an additional 524,632 shares during the period. Skandinaviska Enskilda Banken AB publ increased its holdings in Kimberly-Clark by 552.4% in the 3rd quarter. Skandinaviska Enskilda Banken AB publ now owns 456,458 shares of the company’s stock valued at $55,163,000 after purchasing an additional 386,497 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Nordea Investment Management AB grew its stake in shares of Kimberly-Clark by 28.3% in the fourth quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 1,671,948 shares of the company’s stock valued at $202,740,000 after buying an additional 368,505 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 76.29% of the company’s stock.

Kimberly-Clark Stock Performance

KMB stock traded up $0.29 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $136.95. 269,083 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,192,275. Kimberly-Clark Co. has a 52 week low of $116.32 and a 52 week high of $145.29. The firm has a market capitalization of $46.11 billion, a PE ratio of 25.12, a P/E/G ratio of 3.87 and a beta of 0.38. The business has a 50-day moving average of $128.68 and a two-hundred day moving average of $123.80. The company has a quick ratio of 0.54, a current ratio of 0.81 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 6.05.

Kimberly-Clark (NYSE:KMB) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, April 23rd. The company reported $2.01 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.61 by $0.40. The company had revenue of $5.15 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.08 billion. Kimberly-Clark had a return on equity of 250.28% and a net margin of 9.05%. The company’s quarterly revenue was down .9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $1.67 EPS. As a group, equities analysts predict that Kimberly-Clark Co. will post 7 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Kimberly-Clark Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, July 2nd. Stockholders of record on Friday, June 7th will be paid a $1.22 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, June 7th. This represents a $4.88 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.56%. Kimberly-Clark’s dividend payout ratio is presently 89.71%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, VP Andrew Drexler sold 2,500 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, May 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $136.83, for a total transaction of $342,075.00. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now owns 8,053 shares in the company, valued at $1,101,891.99. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. In other Kimberly-Clark news, VP Andrew Drexler sold 2,500 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, May 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $136.83, for a total transaction of $342,075.00. Following the transaction, the vice president now owns 8,053 shares in the company, valued at $1,101,891.99. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, insider Jeffrey P. Melucci sold 6,390 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, April 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $135.59, for a total transaction of $866,420.10. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 33,649 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,562,467.91. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 20,562 shares of company stock worth $2,808,345 in the last quarter. Insiders own 0.62% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages recently commented on KMB. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price target on Kimberly-Clark from $131.00 to $136.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Wednesday, April 24th. HSBC upped their price target on shares of Kimberly-Clark from $146.00 to $150.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, April 24th. StockNews.com raised shares of Kimberly-Clark from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, April 11th. Bank of America lifted their price target on Kimberly-Clark from $110.00 to $115.00 and gave the stock an “underperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 24th. Finally, Evercore ISI upgraded Kimberly-Clark from an “in-line” rating to an “outperform” rating and upped their price objective for the company from $133.00 to $150.00 in a research note on Thursday, March 28th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have assigned a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $134.85.

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.