Haverford Trust Co Has $2.92 Million Stock Holdings in Kimberly-Clark Co. (NYSE:KMB)

Haverford Trust Co lowered its holdings in shares of Kimberly-Clark Co. (NYSE:KMB) by 10.0% in the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 22,257 shares of the company’s stock after selling 2,476 shares during the period. Haverford Trust Co’s holdings in Kimberly-Clark were worth $2,917,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. Park Avenue Securities LLC raised its stake in Kimberly-Clark by 77.4% during the fourth quarter. Park Avenue Securities LLC now owns 13,786 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,807,000 after acquiring an additional 6,016 shares in the last quarter. Pensionfund Sabic lifted its stake in Kimberly-Clark by 45.5% in the 4th quarter. Pensionfund Sabic now owns 12,800 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,677,000 after purchasing an additional 4,000 shares during the last quarter. Barclays PLC boosted its position in Kimberly-Clark by 19.4% in the third quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 1,681,671 shares of the company’s stock valued at $239,267,000 after buying an additional 273,813 shares in the last quarter. Aprio Wealth Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Kimberly-Clark by 20.0% during the fourth quarter. Aprio Wealth Management LLC now owns 2,792 shares of the company’s stock worth $366,000 after buying an additional 466 shares during the last quarter. Finally, West Oak Capital LLC increased its holdings in shares of Kimberly-Clark by 20,377.6% during the fourth quarter. West Oak Capital LLC now owns 33,788 shares of the company’s stock worth $4,428,000 after buying an additional 33,623 shares in the last quarter. 76.29% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Kimberly-Clark Stock Performance

KMB stock opened at $137.76 on Tuesday. The firm has a market cap of $45.69 billion, a PE ratio of 18.25, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.46 and a beta of 0.36. The company has a current ratio of 0.80, a quick ratio of 0.54 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 7.05. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $135.09 and a 200-day moving average price of $136.11. Kimberly-Clark Co. has a 1-year low of $123.84 and a 1-year high of $150.45.

Kimberly-Clark (NYSE:KMB) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, January 28th. The company reported $1.50 earnings per share for the quarter, hitting analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.50. Kimberly-Clark had a return on equity of 201.43% and a net margin of 12.69%. As a group, equities research analysts expect that Kimberly-Clark Co. will post 7.5 earnings per share for the current year.

Kimberly-Clark Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, April 2nd. Investors of record on Friday, March 7th will be given a $1.26 dividend. This represents a $5.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.66%. This is a positive change from Kimberly-Clark’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.22. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 7th. Kimberly-Clark’s payout ratio is presently 66.75%.

Insider Activity

In related news, VP Andrew Drexler sold 10,838 shares of Kimberly-Clark stock in a transaction on Friday, February 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $141.00, for a total value of $1,528,158.00. Following the completion of 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 transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 0.64% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts recently weighed in on KMB shares. Citigroup cut their price objective on Kimberly-Clark from $125.00 to $118.00 and set a “sell” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, January 15th. Piper Sandler reaffirmed an “overweight” rating and issued a $158.00 price objective (down previously from $161.00) on shares of Kimberly-Clark in a research note on Wednesday, January 29th. Royal Bank of Canada reiterated an “outperform” rating and set a $165.00 target price on shares of Kimberly-Clark in a research report on Friday, January 24th. Barclays decreased their price target on shares of Kimberly-Clark from $144.00 to $132.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, January 17th. Finally, UBS Group lifted their price target on shares of Kimberly-Clark from $132.00 to $134.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 29th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have given a hold rating and six have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $143.64.

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.