Bahl & Gaynor Inc. Decreases Stock Position in Kimberly-Clark Co. (NYSE:KMB)

Bahl & Gaynor Inc. reduced its position in Kimberly-Clark Co. (NYSE:KMB) by 4.9% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 15,362 shares of the company’s stock after selling 790 shares during the quarter. Bahl & Gaynor Inc.’s holdings in Kimberly-Clark were worth $1,867,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other large investors have also bought and sold shares of KMB. OFI Invest Asset Management purchased a new position in shares of Kimberly-Clark in the third quarter valued at $25,000. Cranbrook Wealth Management LLC grew its position in shares of Kimberly-Clark by 90.9% in the fourth quarter. Cranbrook Wealth Management LLC now owns 210 shares of the company’s stock valued at $26,000 after purchasing an additional 100 shares in the last quarter. Centerpoint Advisors LLC grew its position in shares of Kimberly-Clark by 175.0% in the third quarter. Centerpoint Advisors LLC now owns 275 shares of the company’s stock valued at $33,000 after purchasing an additional 175 shares in the last quarter. Wetzel Investment Advisors Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Kimberly-Clark in the fourth quarter valued at $35,000. Finally, Legacy Financial Group LLC purchased a new position in shares of Kimberly-Clark in the third quarter valued at $37,000. 76.29% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts have recently weighed in on the company. Evercore ISI upgraded Kimberly-Clark from an “in-line” rating to an “outperform” rating and lifted their price target for the company from $133.00 to $150.00 in a research report on Thursday, March 28th. Royal Bank of Canada boosted their target price on Kimberly-Clark from $123.00 to $126.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research report on Wednesday. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their target price on Kimberly-Clark from $115.00 to $123.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday. Citigroup boosted their target price on Kimberly-Clark from $111.00 to $125.00 and gave the stock a “sell” rating in a research report on Wednesday. Finally, Bank of America boosted their target price on Kimberly-Clark from $110.00 to $115.00 and gave the stock an “underperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have assigned a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Kimberly-Clark presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $134.85.

Kimberly-Clark Trading Down 0.9 %

Shares of KMB stock opened at $135.24 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.54, a current ratio of 0.81 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 6.05. The business has a 50-day moving average price of $125.86 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $122.87. Kimberly-Clark Co. has a 12-month low of $116.32 and a 12-month high of $147.09. The firm has a market cap of $45.54 billion, a P/E ratio of 24.86, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.90 and a beta of 0.40.

Kimberly-Clark (NYSE:KMB) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 23rd. The company reported $2.01 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.61 by $0.40. Kimberly-Clark had a return on equity of 250.28% and a net margin of 9.05%. The firm had revenue of $5.15 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.08 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $1.67 earnings per share. The company’s revenue was down .9% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities analysts anticipate that Kimberly-Clark Co. will post 6.98 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity

In other news, insider Paula Ramos sold 10,178 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, April 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $137.17, for a total value of $1,396,116.26. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 795 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $109,050.15. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. In related news, Director Mark T. Smucker bought 827 shares of the 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 purchase, the director now owns 827 shares in the company, valued at approximately $100,050.46. The acquisition was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, insider Paula Ramos sold 10,178 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, April 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $137.17, for a total value of $1,396,116.26. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 795 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $109,050.15. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.62% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

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.