Welch Group LLC Acquires 3,424 Shares of Kimberly-Clark Co. (NYSE:KMB)

Welch Group LLC lifted its stake in Kimberly-Clark Co. (NYSE:KMB) by 1.0% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 354,631 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 3,424 shares during the period. Kimberly-Clark makes up 2.1% of Welch Group LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its 26th largest holding. Welch Group LLC owned approximately 0.11% of Kimberly-Clark worth $46,322,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Brown Lisle Cummings Inc. lifted its position in shares of Kimberly-Clark by 27.7% during the 4th quarter. Brown Lisle Cummings Inc. now owns 5,615 shares of the company’s stock worth $736,000 after buying an additional 1,219 shares during the period. Sloy Dahl & Holst LLC raised its stake in Kimberly-Clark by 13.3% during the fourth quarter. Sloy Dahl & Holst LLC now owns 1,700 shares of the company’s stock worth $223,000 after acquiring an additional 200 shares in the last quarter. Rockline Wealth Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of Kimberly-Clark by 8.1% in the fourth quarter. Rockline Wealth Management LLC now owns 16,467 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,158,000 after buying an additional 1,232 shares during the last quarter. Columbus Macro LLC raised its stake in shares of Kimberly-Clark by 234.3% in the fourth quarter. Columbus Macro LLC now owns 50,345 shares of the company’s stock worth $6,597,000 after acquiring an additional 35,286 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Trust Point Inc. raised its position in Kimberly-Clark by 1.5% in the 4th quarter. Trust Point Inc. now owns 7,892 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,034,000 after purchasing an additional 120 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 76.29% of the company’s stock.

Kimberly-Clark Price Performance

NYSE KMB opened at $130.47 on Tuesday. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $131.20 and a 200-day moving average price of $137.15. Kimberly-Clark Co. has a 52 week low of $117.67 and a 52 week high of $149.30. The company has a quick ratio of 0.54, a current ratio of 0.80 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 7.05. The firm has a market capitalization of $43.51 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.28, a PEG ratio of 4.16 and a beta of 0.41.

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 the consensus estimate of $1.50. Kimberly-Clark had a net margin of 12.69% and a return on equity of 201.43%. Equities research analysts anticipate that Kimberly-Clark Co. will post 7.51 earnings per share for the current year.

Kimberly-Clark Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, April 2nd. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 7th will be paid a dividend of $1.26 per share. This is a boost from Kimberly-Clark’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.22. This represents a $5.04 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.86%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 7th. Kimberly-Clark’s payout ratio is presently 64.64%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Kimberly-Clark news, VP Andrew Drexler sold 3,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, November 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $139.01, for a total value of $417,030.00. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now owns 5,053 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $702,417.53. This trade represents a 37.25 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. 0.62% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts have weighed in on the company. Piper Sandler reiterated an “overweight” rating and set a $158.00 target price (down from $161.00) on shares of Kimberly-Clark in a report on Wednesday, January 29th. UBS Group raised their price objective on Kimberly-Clark from $132.00 to $134.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, January 29th. Wells Fargo & Company cut their price objective on shares of Kimberly-Clark from $140.00 to $130.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, January 7th. Royal Bank of Canada reissued an “outperform” rating and issued a $165.00 price objective on shares of Kimberly-Clark in a report on Friday, January 24th. Finally, Barclays decreased their price objective on shares of Kimberly-Clark from $144.00 to $132.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, January 17th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have given a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $143.64.

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.