Colgate-Palmolive (NYSE:CL) Cut to Hold at StockNews.com

StockNews.com downgraded shares of Colgate-Palmolive (NYSE:CL) from a buy rating to a hold rating in a report issued on Tuesday morning.

CL has been the topic of a number of other research reports. Raymond James restated an “outperform” rating and set a $105.00 price target (down previously from $110.00) on shares of Colgate-Palmolive in a report on Monday, February 3rd. Piper Sandler reduced their target price on Colgate-Palmolive from $121.00 to $112.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, January 6th. UBS Group dropped their price target 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. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price objective on shares of Colgate-Palmolive from $97.00 to $99.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, March 14th. Finally, Barclays decreased their price objective on shares of Colgate-Palmolive from $96.00 to $83.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Friday, January 17th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have given a hold rating and eleven have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $102.06.

Colgate-Palmolive Price Performance

CL stock opened at $93.25 on Tuesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 13.40, a quick ratio of 0.58 and a current ratio of 0.92. The firm has a market cap of $75.68 billion, a P/E ratio of 26.49, a P/E/G ratio of 4.20 and a beta of 0.40. The firm’s fifty day moving average is $89.62 and its 200 day moving average is $93.80. Colgate-Palmolive has a 52 week low of $85.32 and a 52 week high of $109.30.

Colgate-Palmolive (NYSE:CL) last released its quarterly earnings data on Friday, January 31st. The company reported $0.91 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.90 by $0.01. Colgate-Palmolive had a return on equity of 477.77% and a net margin of 14.38%. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $0.87 earnings per share. Research analysts predict that Colgate-Palmolive will post 3.75 earnings per share for the current year.

Colgate-Palmolive Increases Dividend

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

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

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Colgate-Palmolive

A number of hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. lifted its stake in Colgate-Palmolive by 36.9% during the 3rd quarter. Connor Clark & Lunn Investment Management Ltd. now owns 14,689 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,525,000 after acquiring an additional 3,960 shares during the period. Great Valley Advisor Group Inc. lifted its position in Colgate-Palmolive by 76.2% during the third quarter. Great Valley Advisor Group Inc. now owns 14,387 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,494,000 after purchasing an additional 6,224 shares during the period. Kingsview Wealth Management LLC lifted its position in Colgate-Palmolive by 4.4% during the third quarter. Kingsview Wealth Management LLC now owns 15,444 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,603,000 after purchasing an additional 644 shares during the period. Larson Financial Group LLC boosted its holdings in Colgate-Palmolive by 526.0% in the third quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 795 shares of the company’s stock worth $83,000 after purchasing an additional 668 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Centaurus Financial Inc. grew its position in Colgate-Palmolive by 15.7% in the 3rd quarter. Centaurus Financial Inc. now owns 3,421 shares of the company’s stock worth $355,000 after purchasing an additional 464 shares during the period. 80.41% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.