Colgate-Palmolive (NYSE:CL) Shares Sold by DnB Asset Management AS

DnB Asset Management AS lowered its holdings in shares of Colgate-Palmolive (NYSE:CL) by 11.2% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 546,503 shares of the company’s stock after selling 68,686 shares during the period. DnB Asset Management AS’s holdings in Colgate-Palmolive were worth $49,683,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Larson Financial Group LLC raised its stake in Colgate-Palmolive by 526.0% during the 3rd quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 795 shares of the company’s stock valued at $83,000 after acquiring an additional 668 shares during the last quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC raised its stake in shares of Colgate-Palmolive by 749.5% during the third quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC now owns 61,623 shares of the company’s stock worth $6,397,000 after purchasing an additional 54,369 shares during the last quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company grew its position in Colgate-Palmolive by 36.9% in the 3rd quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company now owns 954,570 shares of the company’s stock valued at $99,094,000 after buying an additional 257,361 shares during the last quarter. FMR LLC increased its stake in Colgate-Palmolive by 65.6% in the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 6,749,275 shares of the company’s stock valued at $700,642,000 after buying an additional 2,674,807 shares during the period. Finally, Townsquare Capital LLC raised its position in Colgate-Palmolive by 111.3% during the 3rd quarter. Townsquare Capital LLC now owns 55,350 shares of the company’s stock worth $5,746,000 after buying an additional 29,157 shares during the last quarter. 80.41% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. Morgan Stanley dropped their price target on shares of Colgate-Palmolive from $111.00 to $104.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. UBS Group cut their target price on Colgate-Palmolive from $104.00 to $100.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. Royal Bank of Canada restated a “sector perform” rating and issued a $101.00 price target on shares of Colgate-Palmolive in a research note on Wednesday, January 29th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their target price on shares of Colgate-Palmolive from $97.00 to $99.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, March 14th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus lowered their price objective on shares of Colgate-Palmolive from $95.00 to $93.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have assigned a hold rating and eleven have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Colgate-Palmolive currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $102.06.

Colgate-Palmolive Price Performance

CL stock opened at $93.25 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $75.68 billion, a PE ratio of 26.49, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.20 and a beta of 0.40. The company has a current ratio of 0.92, a quick ratio of 0.58 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 13.40. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $89.62 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $93.80. Colgate-Palmolive has a 12-month low of $85.32 and a 12-month high of $109.30.

Colgate-Palmolive (NYSE:CL) last posted its earnings results on Friday, January 31st. The company reported $0.91 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.90 by $0.01. Colgate-Palmolive had a net margin of 14.38% and a return on equity of 477.77%. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $0.87 earnings per share. As a group, research analysts predict that Colgate-Palmolive will post 3.75 EPS for the current year.

Colgate-Palmolive Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 15th. Investors of record on Thursday, April 17th will be issued a dividend of $0.52 per share. This is a positive change from Colgate-Palmolive’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.50. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, April 17th. This represents a $2.08 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.23%. Colgate-Palmolive’s payout ratio is presently 59.09%.

Colgate-Palmolive declared that its board has approved a stock repurchase plan on Thursday, March 20th that authorizes the company to repurchase $5.00 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the company to repurchase up to 6.8% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are usually a sign that the company’s board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.

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.