Cornell Pochily Investment Advisors Inc. Cuts Position in Kimberly-Clark Co. (NYSE:KMB)

Cornell Pochily Investment Advisors Inc. decreased its position in Kimberly-Clark Co. (NYSE:KMB) by 1.5% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 5,981 shares of the company’s stock after selling 90 shares during the quarter. Cornell Pochily Investment Advisors Inc.’s holdings in Kimberly-Clark were worth $727,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in KMB. West Tower Group LLC acquired a new position in shares of Kimberly-Clark during the second quarter worth $25,000. OFI Invest Asset Management purchased a new position in shares of Kimberly-Clark during the third quarter worth about $25,000. DHJJ Financial Advisors Ltd. purchased a new position in shares of Kimberly-Clark during the third quarter worth about $26,000. Centerpoint Advisors LLC grew its holdings in shares of Kimberly-Clark by 175.0% during the third quarter. Centerpoint Advisors LLC now owns 275 shares of the company’s stock worth $33,000 after purchasing an additional 175 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Cornerstone Planning Group LLC purchased a new position in shares of Kimberly-Clark during the second quarter worth about $34,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 76.29% of the company’s stock.

Kimberly-Clark Stock Up 1.9 %

Shares of NYSE:KMB traded up $2.39 during midday trading on Thursday, hitting $129.66. 894,668 shares of the company’s stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 2,088,853. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 6.94, a quick ratio of 0.54 and a current ratio of 0.82. The company has a market cap of $43.68 billion, a PE ratio of 24.99, a P/E/G ratio of 3.96 and a beta of 0.40. The firm’s fifty day moving average price is $122.41 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $121.95. Kimberly-Clark Co. has a twelve month low of $116.32 and a twelve month high of $147.87.

Kimberly-Clark (NYSE:KMB) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, January 24th. The company reported $1.51 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.53 by ($0.02). The business had revenue of $5 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.99 billion. Kimberly-Clark had a net margin of 8.63% and a return on equity of 260.47%. The business’s revenue was up .7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $1.54 EPS. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Kimberly-Clark Co. will post 6.83 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Kimberly-Clark Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 2nd. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 8th will be issued a $1.22 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, March 7th. This represents a $4.88 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.76%. This is a positive change from Kimberly-Clark’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.18. Kimberly-Clark’s payout ratio is currently 93.85%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities analysts recently issued reports on KMB shares. HSBC raised their price target on Kimberly-Clark from $134.00 to $146.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday. Bank of America downgraded shares of Kimberly-Clark from a “neutral” rating to an “underperform” rating and reduced their price objective for the company from $135.00 to $115.00 in a research report on Friday, December 15th. Royal Bank of Canada reduced their price objective on shares of Kimberly-Clark from $125.00 to $123.00 and set a “sector perform” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, January 25th. The Goldman Sachs Group started coverage on shares of Kimberly-Clark in a research report on Friday, March 1st. They issued a “buy” rating and a $135.00 price objective for the company. Finally, Barclays reduced their price target on shares of Kimberly-Clark from $128.00 to $124.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, January 26th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have given a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Kimberly-Clark currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $131.93.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, Director Mark T. Smucker bought 827 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, January 29th. The shares were acquired at an average price of $120.98 per share, for a total transaction of $100,050.46. Following the purchase, the director now owns 827 shares in the company, valued at approximately $100,050.46. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. In other Kimberly-Clark news, insider Tristram Wilkinson sold 3,720 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, January 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $121.00, for a total value of $450,120.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 17,229 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,084,709. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, Director Mark T. Smucker acquired 827 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, January 29th. The stock was bought at an average price of $120.98 per share, with a total value of $100,050.46. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director now directly owns 827 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $100,050.46. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. 0.62% of the stock is currently 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.