Cambridge Trust Co. Increases Position in Colgate-Palmolive (NYSE:CL)

Cambridge Trust Co. lifted its position in shares of Colgate-Palmolive (NYSE:CL) by 6.6% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 6,449 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 400 shares during the period. Cambridge Trust Co.’s holdings in Colgate-Palmolive were worth $514,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP raised its stake in Colgate-Palmolive by 4.0% during the 1st quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 2,444,508 shares of the company’s stock worth $185,376,000 after acquiring an additional 94,837 shares in the last quarter. Covestor Ltd lifted its holdings in shares of Colgate-Palmolive by 71.9% during the first quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 2,451 shares of the company’s stock worth $186,000 after purchasing an additional 1,025 shares during the period. Mackenzie Financial Corp grew its position in Colgate-Palmolive by 8.5% in the 1st quarter. Mackenzie Financial Corp now owns 1,882,813 shares of the company’s stock valued at $142,774,000 after buying an additional 146,936 shares during the last quarter. First Western Trust Bank acquired a new stake in shares of Colgate-Palmolive in the 1st quarter worth $569,000. Finally, Wsfs Capital Management LLC acquired a new position in Colgate-Palmolive during the 1st quarter worth approximately $288,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 80.41% of the company’s stock.

Colgate-Palmolive Stock Down 0.5 %

Shares of NYSE CL opened at $86.30 on Friday. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $87.02 and a 200 day moving average price of $80.67. The company has a current ratio of 1.11, a quick ratio of 0.71 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 8.59. Colgate-Palmolive has a 12-month low of $67.62 and a 12-month high of $90.37. The company has a market cap of $70.94 billion, a P/E ratio of 31.19, a P/E/G ratio of 3.26 and a beta of 0.42.

Colgate-Palmolive (NYSE:CL) last posted its earnings results on Friday, January 26th. The company reported $0.87 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.85 by $0.02. The business had revenue of $4.95 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.89 billion. Colgate-Palmolive had a return on equity of 509.75% and a net margin of 11.82%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 6.9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $0.77 earnings per share. Research analysts anticipate that Colgate-Palmolive will post 3.49 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Colgate-Palmolive Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, May 15th. Stockholders of record on Monday, April 22nd will be issued a dividend of $0.50 per share. This is a boost from Colgate-Palmolive’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.48. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.32%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, April 19th. Colgate-Palmolive’s payout ratio is currently 69.06%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CEO Noel R. Wallace sold 50,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $83.15, for a total value of $4,157,500.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 274,179 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $22,797,983.85. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. In related news, CEO Noel R. Wallace sold 50,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, February 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $83.15, for a total value of $4,157,500.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 274,179 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $22,797,983.85. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, insider Jennifer Daniels sold 61,633 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $83.93, for a total transaction of $5,172,857.69. Following the sale, the insider now owns 57,948 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,863,575.64. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 232,371 shares of company stock worth $19,505,099 in the last quarter. 0.34% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research analysts have recently issued reports on CL shares. TheStreet raised Colgate-Palmolive from a “c+” rating to a “b+” rating in a research note on Friday, January 26th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price target on shares of Colgate-Palmolive from $88.00 to $90.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, January 18th. UBS Group increased their price target on shares of Colgate-Palmolive from $93.00 to $95.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, January 29th. Stifel Nicolaus lifted their price objective on Colgate-Palmolive from $89.00 to $94.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 10th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group assumed coverage on shares of Colgate-Palmolive in a research note on Friday, March 1st. They issued a “buy” rating and a $93.00 target price for the company. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and thirteen have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $89.50.

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.