GAM Holding AG Takes $1.28 Million Position in Colgate-Palmolive Company (NYSE:CL)

GAM Holding AG acquired a new stake in Colgate-Palmolive Company (NYSE:CL) in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor acquired 13,673 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,281,000.

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

Colgate-Palmolive Trading Down 0.4%

NYSE:CL opened at $87.85 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $71.19 billion, a PE ratio of 24.82, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.66 and a beta of 0.38. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $91.50 and a 200 day moving average price of $90.78. Colgate-Palmolive Company has a 12-month low of $85.32 and a 12-month high of $109.30. The company has a current ratio of 0.85, a quick ratio of 0.54 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 8.96.

Colgate-Palmolive (NYSE:CL) last released its earnings results on Friday, April 25th. The company reported $0.91 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.86 by $0.05. The firm had revenue of $4.91 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.92 billion. Colgate-Palmolive had a return on equity of 461.04% and a net margin of 14.52%. Colgate-Palmolive’s revenue was down 3.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the business posted $0.86 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Colgate-Palmolive Company will post 3.75 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

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

Colgate-Palmolive Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 15th. Shareholders of record on Friday, July 18th will be paid a $0.52 dividend. This represents a $2.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.37%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, July 18th. Colgate-Palmolive’s dividend payout ratio is presently 58.76%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms have commented on CL. Barclays decreased their price target on Colgate-Palmolive from $89.00 to $86.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, April 11th. Citigroup lifted their price target on shares of Colgate-Palmolive from $103.00 to $108.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, April 28th. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price objective on shares of Colgate-Palmolive from $83.00 to $88.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, April 2nd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their target price on shares of Colgate-Palmolive from $95.00 to $103.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, April 28th. Finally, UBS Group upped their price target on Colgate-Palmolive from $105.00 to $109.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, April 17th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have issued a hold rating and ten have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Colgate-Palmolive presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $102.12.

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.