Kimberly-Clark (NASDAQ:KMB) Hits New 52-Week Low on Analyst Downgrade

Kimberly-Clark Corporation (NASDAQ:KMB) reached a new 52-week low during mid-day trading on Monday after Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft lowered their price target on the stock from $110.00 to $109.00. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft currently has a hold rating on the stock. Kimberly-Clark traded as low as $96.20 and last traded at $96.4850, with a volume of 2795642 shares. The stock had previously closed at $98.66.

Other analysts have also recently issued reports about the company. TD Cowen decreased their price objective on Kimberly-Clark from $112.00 to $105.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, January 8th. Wells Fargo & Company set a $110.00 price target on Kimberly-Clark in a research note on Tuesday, February 17th. Zacks Research downgraded Kimberly-Clark from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, March 3rd. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “hold (c-)” rating on shares of Kimberly-Clark in a research report on Friday. Finally, Barclays set a $102.00 price objective on shares of Kimberly-Clark in a research note on Friday, January 16th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, eleven have assigned a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Kimberly-Clark presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $115.85.

Insider Transactions at Kimberly-Clark

In other news, VP Andrew Scribner sold 3,049 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $104.29, for a total transaction of $317,980.21. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Insiders own 0.64% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Rockefeller Capital Management L.P. raised its position in Kimberly-Clark by 23.7% in the fourth quarter. Rockefeller Capital Management L.P. now owns 67,548 shares of the company’s stock worth $6,815,000 after acquiring an additional 12,921 shares in the last quarter. Bank of New Hampshire boosted its position in shares of Kimberly-Clark by 132.4% during the 4th quarter. Bank of New Hampshire now owns 860 shares of the company’s stock worth $87,000 after purchasing an additional 490 shares in the last quarter. World Investment Advisors grew its stake in shares of Kimberly-Clark by 29.0% during the 4th quarter. World Investment Advisors now owns 9,695 shares of the company’s stock worth $978,000 after purchasing an additional 2,180 shares during the period. Union Savings Bank acquired a new position in shares of Kimberly-Clark during the 4th quarter worth $295,000. Finally, Mengis Capital Management Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Kimberly-Clark by 21.5% in the 4th quarter. Mengis Capital Management Inc. now owns 22,750 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,295,000 after purchasing an additional 4,019 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 76.29% of the company’s stock.

Kimberly-Clark Price Performance

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.97, a current ratio of 0.75 and a quick ratio of 0.54. The company’s 50 day moving average is $103.27 and its 200 day moving average is $107.40. The stock has a market cap of $32.02 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.89, a PEG ratio of 3.43 and a beta of 0.24.

Kimberly-Clark (NASDAQ:KMB) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, January 27th. The company reported $1.86 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.81 by $0.05. Kimberly-Clark had a net margin of 11.73% and a return on equity of 170.48%. The company had revenue of $4.08 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.11 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $1.50 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was down .6% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts forecast that Kimberly-Clark Corporation will post 7.5 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Kimberly-Clark Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, April 2nd. Investors of record on Friday, March 6th will be paid a $1.28 dividend. This represents a $5.12 annualized dividend and a yield of 5.3%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 6th. This is an increase from Kimberly-Clark’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.26. Kimberly-Clark’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 84.35%.

About Kimberly-Clark

Kimberly-Clark Corporation is a U.S.-based multinational manufacturer of personal care and consumer tissue products. The company develops, produces and markets a range of consumer brands and professional products, including facial and bathroom tissues, disposable diapers and training pants, feminine care, incontinence products and workplace hygiene solutions. Known for consumer-facing names such as Kleenex, Huggies, Kotex, Cottonelle and Scott, as well as professional offerings under Kimberly-Clark Professional and KleenGuard, the company supplies goods to retail, healthcare and institutional customers.

Founded in 1872 in Neenah, Wisconsin, Kimberly-Clark has expanded from its 19th-century paper-making roots into a global household and workplace products company.