Edgestream Partners L.P. Acquires New Shares in Kimberly-Clark Co. (NYSE:KMB)

Edgestream Partners L.P. bought a new position in shares of Kimberly-Clark Co. (NYSE:KMB) during the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund bought 5,287 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $731,000.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD grew its position in shares of Kimberly-Clark by 19.1% in the 1st quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 5,893,146 shares of the company’s stock valued at $762,279,000 after purchasing an additional 944,920 shares during the period. Wulff Hansen & CO. increased its position in shares of Kimberly-Clark by 13,720.0% during the second quarter. Wulff Hansen & CO. now owns 641,524 shares of the company’s stock worth $88,659,000 after acquiring an additional 636,882 shares in the last quarter. Capital World Investors raised its holdings in shares of Kimberly-Clark by 23.8% during the fourth quarter. Capital World Investors now owns 1,926,702 shares of the company’s stock worth $234,114,000 after acquiring an additional 370,094 shares during the period. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP lifted its position in Kimberly-Clark by 22.4% in the 2nd quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 1,934,655 shares of the company’s stock valued at $267,383,000 after acquiring an additional 354,501 shares in the last quarter. Finally, KBC Group NV boosted its stake in Kimberly-Clark by 277.9% in the 4th quarter. KBC Group NV now owns 472,934 shares of the company’s stock worth $57,466,000 after purchasing an additional 347,778 shares during the period. 76.29% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Kimberly-Clark Price Performance

Shares of NYSE KMB opened at $140.75 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.58, a current ratio of 0.85 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 5.59. The business’s 50 day moving average price is $142.29 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $136.10. The company has a market cap of $47.39 billion, a PE ratio of 25.87, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.04 and a beta of 0.39. Kimberly-Clark Co. has a twelve month low of $116.32 and a twelve month high of $149.30.

Kimberly-Clark (NYSE:KMB) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, July 23rd. The company reported $1.96 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.71 by $0.25. Kimberly-Clark had a return on equity of 223.55% and a net margin of 11.28%. The business had revenue of $5.03 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $5.10 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $1.65 EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was down 2.0% on a year-over-year basis. On average, analysts predict that Kimberly-Clark Co. will post 7.25 EPS for the current year.

Kimberly-Clark Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, October 2nd. Investors of record on Friday, September 6th will be paid a $1.22 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, September 6th. This represents a $4.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.47%. Kimberly-Clark’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 89.71%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts have issued reports on the company. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price target on Kimberly-Clark from $138.00 to $134.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, July 24th. Bank of America raised Kimberly-Clark from an “underperform” rating to a “buy” rating and upped their price target for the stock from $115.00 to $160.00 in a research report on Thursday, June 13th. BNP Paribas assumed coverage on shares of Kimberly-Clark in a report on Monday, June 24th. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $146.00 price objective on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their target price on shares of Kimberly-Clark from $123.00 to $135.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a report on Monday, July 22nd. Finally, StockNews.com downgraded shares of Kimberly-Clark from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 30th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have issued a hold rating and seven have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $145.67.

Insider Buying and Selling at Kimberly-Clark

In other news, insider Gonzalo Uribe sold 1,780 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, July 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $140.84, for a total value of $250,695.20. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 7,377 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,038,976.68. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. In other news, insider Jeffrey P. Melucci sold 37,699 shares of Kimberly-Clark stock in a transaction on Thursday, July 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $141.42, for a total transaction of $5,331,392.58. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 19,935 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,819,207.70. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, insider Gonzalo Uribe sold 1,780 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, July 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $140.84, for a total transaction of $250,695.20. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 7,377 shares in the company, valued at $1,038,976.68. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 0.62% of the company’s stock.

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.