Cibc World Markets Corp Buys 16,172 Shares of Kimberly-Clark Co. (NYSE:KMB)

Cibc World Markets Corp increased its position in shares of Kimberly-Clark Co. (NYSE:KMB) by 14.1% during the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The fund owned 130,983 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 16,172 shares during the quarter. Cibc World Markets Corp’s holdings in Kimberly-Clark were worth $17,164,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of KMB. State Street Corp boosted its position in shares of Kimberly-Clark by 5.9% during the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 19,304,396 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,768,367,000 after purchasing an additional 1,083,824 shares in the last quarter. Raymond James Financial Inc. bought a new position in Kimberly-Clark during the fourth quarter worth about $127,436,000. Sarasin & Partners LLP grew its stake in Kimberly-Clark by 140.1% in the fourth quarter. Sarasin & Partners LLP now owns 988,294 shares of the company’s stock valued at $129,506,000 after acquiring an additional 576,610 shares during the period. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. grew its stake in Kimberly-Clark by 1,427.4% in the fourth quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 589,771 shares of the company’s stock valued at $77,284,000 after acquiring an additional 551,158 shares during the period. Finally, Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. raised its position in shares of Kimberly-Clark by 5.3% during the fourth quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 10,589,967 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,387,709,000 after purchasing an additional 529,223 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 76.29% of the company’s stock.

Kimberly-Clark Trading Up 0.2 %

NYSE KMB opened at $139.98 on Tuesday. Kimberly-Clark Co. has a 12 month low of $123.02 and a 12 month high of $150.45. 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 of $133.81 and a 200-day moving average of $136.38. The company has a market cap of $46.43 billion, a PE ratio of 18.54, a PEG ratio of 4.46 and a beta of 0.36.

Kimberly-Clark (NYSE:KMB) last announced 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 net margin of 12.69% and a return on equity of 201.43%. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Kimberly-Clark Co. will post 7.5 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Kimberly-Clark Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, April 2nd. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 7th will be given a dividend of $1.26 per share. This represents a $5.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.60%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 7th. This is an increase from Kimberly-Clark’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.22. Kimberly-Clark’s payout ratio is 66.75%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Kimberly-Clark

In related 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 transaction of $1,528,158.00. Following the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 7,720 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,088,520. The trade was a 58.40 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 0.62% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several brokerages have commented on KMB. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their target price on shares of Kimberly-Clark from $140.00 to $124.00 and set an “underweight” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, January 16th. Royal Bank of Canada reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and issued a $165.00 price objective on shares of Kimberly-Clark in a research report on Friday, January 24th. Barclays lowered their target price on Kimberly-Clark from $144.00 to $132.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Friday, January 17th. UBS Group boosted their price target on Kimberly-Clark from $132.00 to $134.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, January 29th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price objective on Kimberly-Clark from $140.00 to $130.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, January 7th. Two investment 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.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average 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.