Cerity Partners LLC Has $56.20 Million Stake in Colgate-Palmolive Company (NYSE:CL)

Cerity Partners LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Colgate-Palmolive Company (NYSE:CL) by 176.1% during the 1st quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The institutional investor owned 599,782 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 382,545 shares during the period. Cerity Partners LLC’s holdings in Colgate-Palmolive were worth $56,200,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Vision Capital Management Inc. acquired a new position in Colgate-Palmolive during the first quarter worth $322,000. Financial Gravity Asset Management Inc. acquired a new position in Colgate-Palmolive during the first quarter worth $2,166,000. Alps Advisors Inc. boosted its holdings in Colgate-Palmolive by 2.7% during the first quarter. Alps Advisors Inc. now owns 33,673 shares of the company’s stock valued at $3,155,000 after acquiring an additional 899 shares during the period. Galibier Capital Management Ltd. boosted its holdings in Colgate-Palmolive by 1,119.3% during the first quarter. Galibier Capital Management Ltd. now owns 14,631 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,371,000 after acquiring an additional 13,431 shares during the period. Finally, Quotient Wealth Partners LLC boosted its holdings in Colgate-Palmolive by 79.9% during the first quarter. Quotient Wealth Partners LLC now owns 5,501 shares of the company’s stock valued at $515,000 after acquiring an additional 2,443 shares during the period. 80.41% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Colgate-Palmolive Stock Performance

NYSE:CL opened at $89.60 on Friday. Colgate-Palmolive Company has a 12-month low of $85.32 and a 12-month high of $109.30. The company has a quick ratio of 0.54, a current ratio of 0.85 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 8.96. The firm has a market capitalization of $72.61 billion, a PE ratio of 25.31, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.80 and a beta of 0.37. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $90.63 and a 200 day moving average price of $90.52.

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

Colgate-Palmolive declared that its board has initiated a stock buyback program on Thursday, March 20th that allows the company to repurchase $5.00 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization allows the company to buy up to 6.8% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase programs are typically a sign that the company’s leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

Colgate-Palmolive Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 15th. Investors of record on Friday, July 18th will be given a $0.52 dividend. This represents a $2.08 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.32%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, July 18th. Colgate-Palmolive’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 58.76%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts have issued reports on CL shares. Barclays decreased their price target on shares of Colgate-Palmolive from $89.00 to $86.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Friday, April 11th. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price target on shares of Colgate-Palmolive from $83.00 to $88.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, April 2nd. Citigroup upped their price target 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. Wall Street Zen cut shares of Colgate-Palmolive from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, May 7th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price target 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. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have given a hold rating and eight have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $101.13.

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.