Rockland Trust Co. Lowers Position in Colgate-Palmolive (NYSE:CL)

Rockland Trust Co. lessened its stake in Colgate-Palmolive (NYSE:CL) by 0.6% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 166,711 shares of the company’s stock after selling 1,090 shares during the quarter. Rockland Trust Co.’s holdings in Colgate-Palmolive were worth $15,621,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in shares of Colgate-Palmolive during the 4th quarter worth approximately $912,375,000. Diamond Hill Capital Management Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Colgate-Palmolive in the 4th quarter worth $348,718,000. AMF Tjanstepension AB grew its stake in shares of Colgate-Palmolive by 1,088.8% in the 4th quarter. AMF Tjanstepension AB now owns 2,569,394 shares of the company’s stock worth $233,584,000 after buying an additional 2,353,268 shares in the last quarter. Deutsche Bank AG grew its stake in shares of Colgate-Palmolive by 35.6% in the 4th quarter. Deutsche Bank AG now owns 6,922,994 shares of the company’s stock worth $629,369,000 after buying an additional 1,816,865 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Raymond James Financial Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Colgate-Palmolive in the 4th quarter worth $132,405,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 80.41% of the company’s stock.

Colgate-Palmolive Price Performance

Shares of CL stock opened at $93.12 on Friday. Colgate-Palmolive has a twelve month low of $85.32 and a twelve month high of $109.30. The stock has a market capitalization of $75.47 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 26.45, a P/E/G ratio of 4.20 and a beta of 0.38. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $91.71 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $91.12. The company has a current ratio of 0.92, a quick ratio of 0.58 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 13.40.

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. On average, analysts predict that Colgate-Palmolive will post 3.75 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Colgate-Palmolive Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 15th. Shareholders of record on Friday, July 18th will be issued a dividend of $0.52 per share. This represents a $2.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.23%. Colgate-Palmolive’s dividend payout ratio is currently 58.76%.

Colgate-Palmolive announced that its board has authorized a share repurchase program on Thursday, March 20th that authorizes the company to buyback $5.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the company to reacquire up to 6.8% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are usually an indication that the company’s leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts have recently issued reports on the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price objective on Colgate-Palmolive from $95.00 to $103.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, April 28th. UBS Group lifted their price objective 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. Barclays dropped their price objective on shares of Colgate-Palmolive from $89.00 to $86.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, April 11th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price target on shares of Colgate-Palmolive from $83.00 to $88.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 2nd. Finally, Wall Street Zen cut shares of Colgate-Palmolive from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 7th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have assigned a hold rating and ten have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $102.12.

About Colgate-Palmolive

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.