Traders Buy Large Volume of Call Options on Colgate-Palmolive (NYSE:CL)

Colgate-Palmolive (NYSE:CL) saw some unusual options trading activity on Thursday. Traders purchased 30,063 call options on the company. This represents an increase of approximately 571% compared to the typical daily volume of 4,482 call options.

Insider Activity

In related news, CEO Noel R. Wallace sold 69,948 shares of Colgate-Palmolive stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $84.22, for a total value of $5,891,020.56. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 286,881 shares in the company, valued at $24,161,117.82. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. In other Colgate-Palmolive news, CEO Noel R. Wallace sold 50,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, February 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $83.15, for a total transaction of $4,157,500.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 274,179 shares in the company, valued at $22,797,983.85. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, CEO Noel R. Wallace sold 69,948 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $84.22, for a total transaction of $5,891,020.56. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 286,881 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $24,161,117.82. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 232,371 shares of company stock worth $19,505,099 over the last 90 days. Company insiders own 0.34% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Colgate-Palmolive

A number of hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in CL. OFI Invest Asset Management acquired a new position in Colgate-Palmolive in the third quarter worth approximately $25,000. Union Savings Bank boosted its position in Colgate-Palmolive by 76.6% during the fourth quarter. Union Savings Bank now owns 309 shares of the company’s stock worth $25,000 after purchasing an additional 134 shares during the period. Garner Asset Management Corp bought a new stake in Colgate-Palmolive during the fourth quarter worth approximately $30,000. Avion Wealth boosted its position in Colgate-Palmolive by 78.1% during the fourth quarter. Avion Wealth now owns 399 shares of the company’s stock worth $32,000 after purchasing an additional 175 shares during the period. Finally, Atlantic Edge Private Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in Colgate-Palmolive during the fourth quarter worth approximately $32,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 80.41% of the company’s stock.

Colgate-Palmolive Price Performance

NYSE CL opened at $87.13 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $71.62 billion, a PE ratio of 31.34, a PEG ratio of 3.26 and a beta of 0.42. Colgate-Palmolive has a 1 year low of $67.62 and a 1 year high of $90.37. 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 stock’s 50-day moving average price is $87.10 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $80.78.

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

Colgate-Palmolive Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, May 15th. Investors of record on Monday, April 22nd will be issued a $0.50 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, April 19th. This represents a $2.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.30%. This is an increase from Colgate-Palmolive’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.48. Colgate-Palmolive’s dividend payout ratio is currently 69.06%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. Stifel Nicolaus boosted their price target on shares of Colgate-Palmolive from $89.00 to $94.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, April 10th. UBS Group upped their price objective on shares of Colgate-Palmolive from $93.00 to $95.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, January 29th. Barclays upped their price objective on shares of Colgate-Palmolive from $82.00 to $84.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Friday, April 12th. StockNews.com downgraded shares of Colgate-Palmolive from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 20th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price target on shares of Colgate-Palmolive from $88.00 to $90.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, January 18th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and thirteen have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Colgate-Palmolive currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $89.50.

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.