Colgate-Palmolive (NYSE:CL) Holdings Decreased by Anchor Capital Advisors LLC

Anchor Capital Advisors LLC reduced its stake in shares of Colgate-Palmolive (NYSE:CL) by 8.5% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 28,660 shares of the company’s stock after selling 2,664 shares during the quarter. Anchor Capital Advisors LLC’s holdings in Colgate-Palmolive were worth $2,581,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. NTV Asset Management LLC lifted its holdings in Colgate-Palmolive by 2.4% in the 1st quarter. NTV Asset Management LLC now owns 12,568 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,132,000 after acquiring an additional 300 shares during the last quarter. Forsta AP Fonden lifted its holdings in Colgate-Palmolive by 57.0% in the 1st quarter. Forsta AP Fonden now owns 262,600 shares of the company’s stock valued at $23,647,000 after acquiring an additional 95,300 shares during the last quarter. Sustainable Insight Capital Management LLC acquired a new stake in Colgate-Palmolive in the 1st quarter valued at about $414,000. Empirical Financial Services LLC d.b.a. Empirical Wealth Management lifted its holdings in Colgate-Palmolive by 3.4% in the 1st quarter. Empirical Financial Services LLC d.b.a. Empirical Wealth Management now owns 11,969 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,078,000 after acquiring an additional 396 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Hilltop National Bank purchased a new stake in Colgate-Palmolive during the first quarter valued at about $188,000. 80.41% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Colgate-Palmolive Stock Performance

Shares of CL traded down $0.47 during mid-day trading on Monday, hitting $97.60. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 1,146,429 shares, compared to its average volume of 4,392,701. Colgate-Palmolive has a one year low of $67.62 and a one year high of $99.08. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 13.21, a quick ratio of 0.70 and a current ratio of 1.06. The firm has a market capitalization of $80.07 billion, a PE ratio of 31.03, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.61 and a beta of 0.39. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $95.12 and its two-hundred day moving average is $88.96.

Colgate-Palmolive (NYSE:CL) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Friday, April 26th. The company reported $0.86 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.82 by $0.04. The company had revenue of $5.07 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.96 billion. Colgate-Palmolive had a return on equity of 485.40% and a net margin of 13.22%. Colgate-Palmolive’s revenue for the quarter was up 6.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $0.73 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Colgate-Palmolive will post 3.53 EPS for the current year.

Colgate-Palmolive Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, August 15th. Shareholders of record on Friday, July 19th will be issued a dividend of $0.50 per share. This represents a $2.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.05%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, July 19th. Colgate-Palmolive’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 63.29%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms have commented on CL. Royal Bank of Canada upped their price objective on shares of Colgate-Palmolive from $88.00 to $95.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a research note on Monday, April 29th. BNP Paribas began coverage on shares of Colgate-Palmolive in a research note on Monday, June 24th. They set an “outperform” rating and a $109.00 price objective for the company. Citigroup upped their target price on Colgate-Palmolive from $103.00 to $112.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 10th. Argus increased their price objective on Colgate-Palmolive from $97.00 to $107.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, May 15th. Finally, Morgan Stanley increased their price objective on Colgate-Palmolive from $101.00 to $103.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, May 28th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fifteen have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Colgate-Palmolive currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $95.33.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, insider John W. Kooyman sold 3,497 shares of Colgate-Palmolive stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, May 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $93.47, for a total transaction of $326,864.59. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 3,181 shares in the company, valued at approximately $297,328.07. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. In other Colgate-Palmolive news, insider Sally Massey sold 12,226 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, May 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $94.06, for a total transaction of $1,149,977.56. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 13,924 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,309,691.44. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, insider John W. Kooyman sold 3,497 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, May 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $93.47, for a total value of $326,864.59. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 3,181 shares in the company, valued at approximately $297,328.07. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 0.34% of the company’s stock.

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.