Cetera Investment Advisers Reduces Position in Colgate-Palmolive (NYSE:CL)

Cetera Investment Advisers trimmed its stake in Colgate-Palmolive (NYSE:CL) by 12.9% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 135,923 shares of the company’s stock after selling 20,130 shares during the period. Cetera Investment Advisers’ holdings in Colgate-Palmolive were worth $12,357,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Kohmann Bosshard Financial Services LLC purchased a new position in shares of Colgate-Palmolive in the fourth quarter valued at about $26,000. Centricity Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in Colgate-Palmolive in the 4th quarter worth approximately $27,000. Union Bancaire Privee UBP SA bought a new position in Colgate-Palmolive in the 4th quarter worth approximately $32,000. Briaud Financial Planning Inc purchased a new stake in Colgate-Palmolive during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $32,000. Finally, Wintrust Investments LLC bought a new stake in shares of Colgate-Palmolive during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $33,000. 80.41% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Colgate-Palmolive Stock Down 1.0 %

Shares of NYSE CL opened at $89.91 on Friday. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $92.21 and a 200 day moving average price of $91.53. The firm has a market capitalization of $72.86 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 25.54, a PEG ratio of 4.20 and a beta of 0.39. Colgate-Palmolive has a 52-week low of $85.32 and a 52-week high of $109.30. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 13.40, a quick ratio of 0.58 and a current ratio of 0.92.

Colgate-Palmolive (NYSE:CL) last posted its earnings results on Friday, April 25th. The company reported $0.91 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.86 by $0.05. The business had revenue of $4.91 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.92 billion. Colgate-Palmolive had a net margin of 14.38% and a return on equity of 477.77%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was down 3.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $0.86 EPS. Sell-side analysts expect that Colgate-Palmolive will post 3.75 earnings per share for the current year.

Colgate-Palmolive Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 15th. Investors of record on Thursday, April 17th will be given a dividend of $0.52 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, April 17th. This represents a $2.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.31%. This is an increase from Colgate-Palmolive’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.50. Colgate-Palmolive’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 58.76%.

Colgate-Palmolive announced that its board has authorized a share repurchase plan on Thursday, March 20th that permits the company to repurchase $5.00 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization permits the company to purchase up to 6.8% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are generally a sign that the company’s board believes its shares are undervalued.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several brokerages have commented on CL. UBS Group boosted their price target on shares of Colgate-Palmolive from $105.00 to $109.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, April 17th. Stifel Nicolaus decreased their target price on Colgate-Palmolive from $95.00 to $93.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. Royal Bank of Canada restated a “sector perform” rating and set a $101.00 price target on shares of Colgate-Palmolive in a report on Wednesday, January 29th. StockNews.com cut Colgate-Palmolive from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday. Finally, Citigroup raised their target price on shares of Colgate-Palmolive from $103.00 to $108.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, April 28th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have given a hold rating and eleven have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $102.39.

Colgate-Palmolive Company 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.