Colgate-Palmolive Company $CL Shares Sold by Legal & General Group Plc

Legal & General Group Plc cut its stake in shares of Colgate-Palmolive Company (NYSE:CL) by 2.9% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 5,746,897 shares of the company’s stock after selling 172,627 shares during the quarter. Legal & General Group Plc owned approximately 0.71% of Colgate-Palmolive worth $454,120,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in CL. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. lifted its stake in Colgate-Palmolive by 8,040.1% during the fourth quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. now owns 4,655,987 shares of the company’s stock worth $380,666,000 after purchasing an additional 4,598,789 shares during the last quarter. Diamond Hill Capital Management Inc. lifted its stake in Colgate-Palmolive by 46.7% during the third quarter. Diamond Hill Capital Management Inc. now owns 8,077,549 shares of the company’s stock worth $645,719,000 after purchasing an additional 2,572,796 shares during the last quarter. Amundi lifted its stake in Colgate-Palmolive by 41.6% during the third quarter. Amundi now owns 6,294,445 shares of the company’s stock worth $487,505,000 after purchasing an additional 1,850,412 shares during the last quarter. Two Sigma Investments LP lifted its stake in Colgate-Palmolive by 360.9% during the third quarter. Two Sigma Investments LP now owns 2,126,249 shares of the company’s stock worth $169,972,000 after purchasing an additional 1,664,949 shares during the last quarter. Finally, SG Americas Securities LLC lifted its stake in Colgate-Palmolive by 3,896.0% during the fourth quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 1,189,005 shares of the company’s stock worth $93,955,000 after purchasing an additional 1,159,250 shares during the last quarter. 80.41% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Colgate-Palmolive Price Performance

Shares of NYSE CL opened at $90.66 on Tuesday. The company has a current ratio of 1.02, a quick ratio of 0.67 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 16.33. Colgate-Palmolive Company has a twelve month low of $74.54 and a twelve month high of $99.33. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $86.16 and a two-hundred day moving average of $85.32. The stock has a market cap of $72.74 billion, a P/E ratio of 35.28, a P/E/G ratio of 4.71 and a beta of 0.31.

Colgate-Palmolive (NYSE:CL) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Friday, May 1st. The company reported $0.97 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.94 by $0.03. Colgate-Palmolive had a return on equity of 386.76% and a net margin of 10.04%.The company had revenue of $5.32 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $5.22 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $0.91 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 8.4% on a year-over-year basis. On average, research analysts forecast that Colgate-Palmolive Company will post 3.82 earnings per share for the current year.

Colgate-Palmolive Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, May 15th. Shareholders of record on Monday, April 20th were paid a $0.53 dividend. This is an increase from Colgate-Palmolive’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.52. This represents a $2.12 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.3%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, April 20th. Colgate-Palmolive’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 82.49%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts recently weighed in on CL shares. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their target price on Colgate-Palmolive from $100.00 to $92.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, April 8th. Rothschild & Co Redburn set a $100.00 target price on Colgate-Palmolive and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 21st. TD Cowen restated a “hold” rating and set a $85.00 target price on shares of Colgate-Palmolive in a research note on Tuesday, March 31st. Weiss Ratings upgraded Colgate-Palmolive from a “hold (c)” rating to a “hold (c+)” rating in a research note on Monday, May 4th. Finally, Morgan Stanley restated an “overweight” rating on shares of Colgate-Palmolive in a research note on Monday, May 4th. Twelve analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and six have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $95.88.

Colgate-Palmolive Company Profile

Colgate-Palmolive Company is a global consumer products company with a long history in household and personal care categories. The business traces its roots to the early 19th century and has evolved into a multinational manufacturer and marketer of everyday consumer goods focused on health, hygiene and home care.

The company’s core activities center on oral care, personal care, home care and pet nutrition. Its product portfolio includes toothpaste, toothbrushes and mouthwash in oral care; soaps, body washes and deodorants in personal care; dishwashing liquids, surface cleaners and other household products in home care; and scientifically formulated pet foods under its pet nutrition business.