Colgate-Palmolive (NYSE:CL) Shares Sold by Czech National Bank

Czech National Bank reduced its position in shares of Colgate-Palmolive (NYSE:CL) by 0.2% during the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 98,205 shares of the company’s stock after selling 175 shares during the period. Czech National Bank’s holdings in Colgate-Palmolive were worth $7,566,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in CL. Moneta Group Investment Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Colgate-Palmolive by 90,253.2% during the fourth quarter. Moneta Group Investment Advisors LLC now owns 15,974,451 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,258,627,000 after purchasing an additional 15,956,771 shares during the last quarter. Norges Bank acquired a new position in shares of Colgate-Palmolive in the fourth quarter worth about $644,715,000. Renaissance Technologies LLC increased its position in shares of Colgate-Palmolive by 151.6% in the first quarter. Renaissance Technologies LLC now owns 5,688,786 shares of the company’s stock worth $431,381,000 after acquiring an additional 3,427,400 shares in the last quarter. Morgan Stanley raised its holdings in shares of Colgate-Palmolive by 41.7% during the fourth quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 11,370,549 shares of the company’s stock valued at $895,886,000 after acquiring an additional 3,345,297 shares during the period. Finally, First Trust Advisors LP boosted its stake in Colgate-Palmolive by 244.4% in the 1st quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 3,474,408 shares of the company’s stock worth $261,102,000 after purchasing an additional 2,465,622 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 78.36% of the company’s stock.

Insider Transactions at Colgate-Palmolive

In related news, VP Gregory Malcolm sold 10,493 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, August 31st. The shares were sold at an average price of $73.90, for a total transaction of $775,432.70. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 7,852 shares in the company, valued at approximately $580,262.80. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. In other news, insider Jennifer Daniels sold 24,704 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, September 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $73.31, for a total value of $1,811,050.24. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 52,813 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,871,721.03. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, VP Gregory Malcolm sold 10,493 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, August 31st. The shares were sold at an average price of $73.90, for a total transaction of $775,432.70. Following the completion of the sale, the vice president now directly owns 7,852 shares in the company, valued at approximately $580,262.80. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 105,501 shares of company stock worth $7,838,332. Insiders own 0.34% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts have recently weighed in on CL shares. Barclays lifted their price target on Colgate-Palmolive from $77.00 to $81.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Tuesday, August 1st. Royal Bank of Canada reiterated a “sector perform” rating and issued a $83.00 target price on shares of Colgate-Palmolive in a report on Monday, July 31st. StockNews.com lowered shares of Colgate-Palmolive from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, September 11th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upped their price objective on shares of Colgate-Palmolive from $88.00 to $91.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, July 31st. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $85.33.

Colgate-Palmolive Stock Performance

Shares of CL opened at $73.17 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 28.43, a current ratio of 1.17 and a quick ratio of 0.73. Colgate-Palmolive has a one year low of $67.84 and a one year high of $82.09. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $75.06 and its 200 day moving average price is $75.83. The company has a market capitalization of $60.49 billion, a PE ratio of 40.65, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.10 and a beta of 0.50.

Colgate-Palmolive (NYSE:CL) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Friday, July 28th. The company reported $0.77 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.75 by $0.02. Colgate-Palmolive had a return on equity of 386.76% and a net margin of 8.02%. The business had revenue of $4.82 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.70 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $0.72 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 7.5% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, analysts expect that Colgate-Palmolive will post 3.17 earnings per share for the current year.

Colgate-Palmolive Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, November 15th. Stockholders of record on Monday, October 23rd will be given a $0.48 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, October 20th. This represents a $1.92 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.62%. Colgate-Palmolive’s dividend payout ratio is 106.67%.

Colgate-Palmolive Company Profile

Colgate-Palmolive Company, together with its subsidiaries, manufactures and sells consumer products worldwide. The company 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.