HTLF Bank Makes New Investment in Colgate-Palmolive (NYSE:CL)

HTLF Bank acquired a new stake in shares of Colgate-Palmolive (NYSE:CL) in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor acquired 4,200 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $335,000.

Other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Fidelis Capital Partners LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Colgate-Palmolive during the fourth quarter worth about $284,000. Xponance Inc. boosted its stake in Colgate-Palmolive by 7.9% in the 4th quarter. Xponance Inc. now owns 182,775 shares of the company’s stock worth $14,569,000 after purchasing an additional 13,342 shares in the last quarter. AIA Group Ltd grew its position in Colgate-Palmolive by 16.5% during the 4th quarter. AIA Group Ltd now owns 366,667 shares of the company’s stock worth $29,227,000 after purchasing an additional 52,046 shares during the last quarter. Cambridge Trust Co. increased its stake in Colgate-Palmolive by 6.6% during the 4th quarter. Cambridge Trust Co. now owns 6,449 shares of the company’s stock valued at $514,000 after purchasing an additional 400 shares in the last quarter. Finally, NBW Capital LLC purchased a new position in shares of Colgate-Palmolive in the fourth quarter worth $247,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 80.41% of the company’s stock.

Colgate-Palmolive Trading Up 1.1 %

Shares of NYSE:CL opened at $87.13 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization of $71.62 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 31.34, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.26 and a beta of 0.42. The business’s 50 day moving average price is $87.10 and its 200-day moving average price is $80.78. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 8.59, a current ratio of 1.11 and a quick ratio of 0.71. Colgate-Palmolive has a 1 year low of $67.62 and a 1 year high of $90.37.

Colgate-Palmolive (NYSE:CL) last announced its earnings results on Friday, January 26th. The company reported $0.87 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.85 by $0.02. Colgate-Palmolive had a net margin of 11.82% and a return on equity of 509.75%. The business had revenue of $4.95 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.89 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $0.77 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 6.9% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Colgate-Palmolive will post 3.5 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Colgate-Palmolive Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, May 15th. Investors of record on Monday, April 22nd will be paid a $0.50 dividend. This is an increase from Colgate-Palmolive’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.48. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.30%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, April 19th. Colgate-Palmolive’s dividend payout ratio is currently 69.06%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Colgate-Palmolive

In other news, CEO Noel R. Wallace sold 50,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $83.15, for a total value of $4,157,500.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 274,179 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $22,797,983.85. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. In other news, CEO Noel R. Wallace sold 50,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $83.15, for a total value of $4,157,500.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 274,179 shares in the company, valued at $22,797,983.85. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, insider Jennifer Daniels sold 61,633 shares of Colgate-Palmolive stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $83.93, for a total value of $5,172,857.69. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 57,948 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,863,575.64. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 232,371 shares of company stock worth $19,505,099. Corporate insiders own 0.34% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages recently issued reports on CL. TheStreet upgraded Colgate-Palmolive from a “c+” rating to a “b+” rating in a research note on Friday, January 26th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price target on shares of Colgate-Palmolive from $88.00 to $90.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 18th. Morgan Stanley upped their price objective on shares of Colgate-Palmolive from $85.00 to $93.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, January 29th. UBS Group raised their target price on shares of Colgate-Palmolive from $93.00 to $95.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, January 29th. Finally, Citigroup increased their price target on Colgate-Palmolive from $95.00 to $100.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and thirteen have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $89.50.

Colgate-Palmolive Profile

Colgate-Palmolive Company, together with its subsidiaries, manufactures and sells consumer products in the United States and internationally. It operates through two segments: Oral, Personal and Home Care; and Pet Nutrition. The Oral, Personal and Home Care segment offers toothpaste, toothbrushes, mouthwash, bar and liquid hand soaps, shower gels, shampoos, conditioners, deodorants and antiperspirants, skin health products, dishwashing detergents, fabric conditioners, household cleaners, and other related items.