Geode Capital Management LLC Purchases 797,953 Shares of Kimberly-Clark Co. (NYSE:KMB)

Geode Capital Management LLC increased its position in shares of Kimberly-Clark Co. (NYSE:KMB) by 10.4% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 8,473,459 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 797,953 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC owned 2.54% of Kimberly-Clark worth $1,113,444,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of KMB. Marshall Investment Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Kimberly-Clark in the 4th quarter valued at about $25,000. Migdal Insurance & Financial Holdings Ltd. bought a new stake in Kimberly-Clark in the fourth quarter worth approximately $25,000. Roxbury Financial LLC acquired a new position in Kimberly-Clark in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $33,000. Golden State Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Kimberly-Clark during the 4th quarter worth approximately $32,000. Finally, Synergy Asset Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Kimberly-Clark during the 4th quarter worth approximately $35,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 76.29% of the company’s stock.

Kimberly-Clark Stock Up 0.6 %

Kimberly-Clark stock opened at $143.13 on Wednesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 7.05, a quick ratio of 0.54 and a current ratio of 0.80. The stock has a market cap of $47.47 billion, a PE ratio of 18.96, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.46 and a beta of 0.36. Kimberly-Clark Co. has a fifty-two week low of $123.84 and a fifty-two week high of $150.45. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $136.76 and its 200 day simple moving average is $135.92.

Kimberly-Clark (NYSE:KMB) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, January 28th. The company reported $1.50 EPS for the quarter, meeting analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.50. Kimberly-Clark had a return on equity of 201.43% and a net margin of 12.69%. Research analysts predict that Kimberly-Clark Co. will post 7.5 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Kimberly-Clark Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, April 2nd. Investors of record on Friday, March 7th will be issued a $1.26 dividend. This is an increase from Kimberly-Clark’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.22. This represents a $5.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.52%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 7th. Kimberly-Clark’s payout ratio is 66.75%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

KMB has been the topic of several research analyst reports. UBS Group increased their target price on shares of Kimberly-Clark from $132.00 to $134.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, January 29th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their target price on Kimberly-Clark from $140.00 to $124.00 and set an “underweight” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, January 16th. TD Cowen downgraded Kimberly-Clark from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and set a $145.00 price target on the stock. in a research note on Wednesday, January 8th. Piper Sandler reissued 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. Finally, StockNews.com upgraded Kimberly-Clark from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, March 6th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have given a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $144.85.

Insider Activity at Kimberly-Clark

In other Kimberly-Clark news, VP Andrew Drexler sold 10,838 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated 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 transaction, the vice president now directly owns 7,720 shares in the company, valued at $1,088,520. The trade was a 58.40 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. 0.64% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

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.