Heartland Advisors Inc. Buys 9,867 Shares of Kimberly-Clark Co. (NYSE:KMB)

Heartland Advisors Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Kimberly-Clark Co. (NYSE:KMB) by 6.6% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 159,217 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 9,867 shares during the quarter. Kimberly-Clark accounts for 1.1% of Heartland Advisors Inc.’s portfolio, making the stock its 17th biggest holding. Heartland Advisors Inc.’s holdings in Kimberly-Clark were worth $20,864,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in KMB. Confluence Wealth Services Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Kimberly-Clark by 5.1% in the 4th quarter. Confluence Wealth Services Inc. now owns 1,637 shares of the company’s stock worth $208,000 after acquiring an additional 80 shares during the last quarter. YHB Investment Advisors Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Kimberly-Clark by 3.4% in the 4th quarter. YHB Investment Advisors Inc. now owns 2,519 shares of the company’s stock worth $330,000 after acquiring an additional 83 shares during the last quarter. Ascent Wealth Partners LLC grew its position in Kimberly-Clark by 1.0% during the 4th quarter. Ascent Wealth Partners LLC now owns 9,321 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,221,000 after acquiring an additional 90 shares during the last quarter. Avestar Capital LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Kimberly-Clark by 5.1% during the third quarter. Avestar Capital LLC now owns 1,953 shares of the company’s stock worth $278,000 after purchasing an additional 95 shares during the period. Finally, Silver Lake Advisory LLC lifted its stake in shares of Kimberly-Clark by 0.8% in the 4th quarter. Silver Lake Advisory LLC now owns 11,896 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,559,000 after purchasing an additional 95 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 76.29% of the company’s stock.

Kimberly-Clark Stock Up 0.7 %

KMB opened at $140.55 on Friday. Kimberly-Clark Co. has a 1-year low of $123.84 and a 1-year high of $150.45. The stock has a market capitalization of $46.61 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.62, a P/E/G 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 business has a 50 day moving average of $135.86 and a 200-day moving average of $136.09.

Kimberly-Clark (NYSE:KMB) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, January 28th. The company reported $1.50 EPS for the quarter, meeting the consensus estimate of $1.50. Kimberly-Clark had a net margin of 12.69% and a return on equity of 201.43%. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate 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 issued a $1.26 dividend. This is a boost 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 3.59%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 7th. Kimberly-Clark’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 66.75%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages have recently issued reports on KMB. TD Cowen downgraded shares of Kimberly-Clark from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and set a $145.00 price objective for the company. in a research report on Wednesday, January 8th. 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. StockNews.com upgraded Kimberly-Clark from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, March 6th. Royal Bank of Canada reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and issued a $165.00 price target on shares of Kimberly-Clark in a research note on Friday, January 24th. Finally, Piper Sandler restated an “overweight” rating and issued a $158.00 target price (down from $161.00) on shares of Kimberly-Clark in a report on Wednesday, January 29th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have issued a hold rating and six have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $144.50.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Kimberly-Clark news, VP Andrew Drexler sold 10,838 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 28th. The stock was 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 in the company, valued at approximately $1,088,520. The trade was a 58.40 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Insiders own 0.64% of the company’s stock.

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.