Colgate-Palmolive (NYSE:CL) Shares Purchased by Ritholtz Wealth Management

Ritholtz Wealth Management boosted its position in Colgate-Palmolive (NYSE:CL) by 1.9% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 48,443 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 905 shares during the quarter. Ritholtz Wealth Management’s holdings in Colgate-Palmolive were worth $3,861,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in CL. Vest Financial LLC increased its stake in shares of Colgate-Palmolive by 25.1% during the 4th quarter. Vest Financial LLC now owns 370,071 shares of the company’s stock valued at $29,498,000 after acquiring an additional 74,337 shares during the last quarter. Central Bank & Trust Co. increased its stake in shares of Colgate-Palmolive by 22.1% during the 4th quarter. Central Bank & Trust Co. now owns 1,383 shares of the company’s stock valued at $110,000 after acquiring an additional 250 shares during the last quarter. Dynamic Advisor Solutions LLC increased its stake in shares of Colgate-Palmolive by 9.2% during the 4th quarter. Dynamic Advisor Solutions LLC now owns 10,808 shares of the company’s stock valued at $864,000 after acquiring an additional 910 shares during the last quarter. Sarasin & Partners LLP increased its stake in shares of Colgate-Palmolive by 1.2% during the 4th quarter. Sarasin & Partners LLP now owns 4,053,634 shares of the company’s stock valued at $323,115,000 after acquiring an additional 49,980 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Cornerstone Wealth Management LLC increased its stake in shares of Colgate-Palmolive by 2.5% during the 4th quarter. Cornerstone Wealth Management LLC now owns 7,170 shares of the company’s stock valued at $571,000 after acquiring an additional 172 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 80.41% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

CL has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. UBS Group upped their price objective on shares of Colgate-Palmolive from $93.00 to $95.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, January 29th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their target price on Colgate-Palmolive from $88.00 to $90.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, January 18th. The Goldman Sachs Group initiated coverage on Colgate-Palmolive in a report on Friday, March 1st. They issued a “buy” rating and a $93.00 price target for the company. Bank of America upgraded Colgate-Palmolive from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $90.00 price target for the company in a report on Friday, December 15th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company upped their price target on Colgate-Palmolive from $80.00 to $88.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Monday, January 29th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twelve have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $87.31.

Colgate-Palmolive Stock Performance

CL stock opened at $90.05 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 1.11, a quick ratio of 0.71 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 8.59. The firm has a market cap of $74.12 billion, a P/E ratio of 32.39, a P/E/G ratio of 3.38 and a beta of 0.42. Colgate-Palmolive has a 12-month low of $67.62 and a 12-month high of $90.37. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $85.52 and its 200 day simple moving average is $79.06.

Colgate-Palmolive (NYSE:CL) last issued its earnings results on Friday, January 26th. The company reported $0.87 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.85 by $0.02. Colgate-Palmolive had a return on equity of 509.75% and a net margin of 11.82%. The firm had revenue of $4.95 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.89 billion. During the same period last year, the company earned $0.77 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 6.9% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Colgate-Palmolive will post 3.49 EPS for the current year.

Colgate-Palmolive Increases Dividend

The firm 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 represents a $2.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.22%. This is a positive change from Colgate-Palmolive’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.48. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, April 19th. Colgate-Palmolive’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 69.06%.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director C Martin Harris sold 2,760 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, January 31st. The stock was sold at an average price of $84.50, for a total transaction of $233,220.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 19,272 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,628,484. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. In related news, CEO Noel R. Wallace sold 29,772 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, February 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $84.06, for a total value of $2,502,634.32. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 301,343 shares in the company, valued at approximately $25,330,892.58. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, Director C Martin Harris sold 2,760 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, January 31st. The shares were sold at an average price of $84.50, for a total value of $233,220.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 19,272 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,628,484. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 232,371 shares of company stock valued at $19,505,099. 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.