Taurus Asset Management LLC Sells 725 Shares of Colgate-Palmolive (NYSE:CL)

Taurus Asset Management LLC trimmed its position in shares of Colgate-Palmolive (NYSE:CL) by 5.9% during the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 11,618 shares of the company’s stock after selling 725 shares during the quarter. Taurus Asset Management LLC’s holdings in Colgate-Palmolive were worth $1,127,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Union Savings Bank increased its stake in shares of Colgate-Palmolive by 76.6% in the 4th quarter. Union Savings Bank now owns 309 shares of the company’s stock worth $25,000 after acquiring an additional 134 shares in the last quarter. E Fund Management Hong Kong Co. Ltd. purchased a new stake in Colgate-Palmolive in the second quarter worth about $25,000. Atlantic Edge Private Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Colgate-Palmolive during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $32,000. PSI Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Colgate-Palmolive by 4,971.4% during the first quarter. PSI Advisors LLC now owns 355 shares of the company’s stock valued at $32,000 after purchasing an additional 348 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Core Wealth Advisors Inc. boosted its position in shares of Colgate-Palmolive by 56.6% in the 4th quarter. Core Wealth Advisors Inc. now owns 404 shares of the company’s stock worth $32,000 after purchasing an additional 146 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 80.41% of the company’s stock.

Colgate-Palmolive Price Performance

NYSE CL opened at $105.73 on Friday. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $102.11 and a 200-day moving average price of $95.23. Colgate-Palmolive has a 52 week low of $67.62 and a 52 week high of $109.30. The company has a quick ratio of 0.70, a current ratio of 1.06 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 16.90. The firm has a market capitalization of $86.39 billion, a P/E ratio of 33.46, a PEG ratio of 3.72 and a beta of 0.40.

Colgate-Palmolive (NYSE:CL) last announced its earnings results on Friday, July 26th. The company reported $0.91 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.87 by $0.04. The business had revenue of $5.06 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $5 billion. Colgate-Palmolive had a net margin of 14.21% and a return on equity of 470.19%. The firm’s revenue was up 4.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $0.77 earnings per share. Equities research analysts anticipate that Colgate-Palmolive will post 3.57 earnings per share for the current year.

Colgate-Palmolive Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 15th. Investors of record on Friday, October 18th will be given a dividend of $0.50 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, October 18th. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.89%. Colgate-Palmolive’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 63.29%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Colgate-Palmolive

In other news, insider Sally Massey sold 15,850 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, August 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $103.28, for a total value of $1,636,988.00. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 13,942 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,439,929.76. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. In other news, insider Sally Massey sold 15,850 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, August 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $103.28, for a total transaction of $1,636,988.00. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 13,942 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,439,929.76. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, EVP Gregory Malcolm sold 10,533 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, August 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $103.10, for a total transaction of $1,085,952.30. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 10,377 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,069,868.70. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 43,490 shares of company stock valued at $4,486,063. Company insiders own 0.34% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages have issued reports on CL. Sanford C. Bernstein lifted their price objective on Colgate-Palmolive from $100.00 to $103.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 30th. Evercore ISI upped their price target on shares of Colgate-Palmolive from $100.00 to $106.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, July 18th. Jefferies Financial Group downgraded shares of Colgate-Palmolive from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and cut their price objective for the company from $103.00 to $95.00 in a research report on Wednesday, July 24th. Hsbc Global Res cut shares of Colgate-Palmolive from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, July 26th. Finally, Barclays increased their price target on shares of Colgate-Palmolive from $91.00 to $96.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Monday, July 29th. Nine equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and thirteen have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Colgate-Palmolive currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $102.63.

About Colgate-Palmolive

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.