Colgate-Palmolive (NYSE:CL) Shares Sold by Retirement Systems of Alabama

Retirement Systems of Alabama decreased its stake in Colgate-Palmolive (NYSE:CL) by 2.9% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 181,464 shares of the company’s stock after selling 5,458 shares during the quarter. Retirement Systems of Alabama’s holdings in Colgate-Palmolive were worth $14,464,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the stock. Morgan Stanley boosted its position in Colgate-Palmolive by 3.2% during the 3rd quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 16,815,987 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,195,785,000 after acquiring an additional 514,559 shares during the period. Northern Trust Corp boosted its position in Colgate-Palmolive by 3.3% during the 3rd quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 9,452,931 shares of the company’s stock worth $672,198,000 after acquiring an additional 305,862 shares during the period. American Century Companies Inc. boosted its position in Colgate-Palmolive by 2.0% during the 3rd quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 6,590,405 shares of the company’s stock worth $468,644,000 after acquiring an additional 127,805 shares during the period. FMR LLC boosted its position in Colgate-Palmolive by 27.3% during the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 5,597,742 shares of the company’s stock worth $398,055,000 after acquiring an additional 1,199,660 shares during the period. Finally, Nordea Investment Management AB boosted its position in Colgate-Palmolive by 10.1% during the 3rd quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 5,455,384 shares of the company’s stock worth $390,005,000 after acquiring an additional 500,916 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 80.41% of the company’s stock.

Colgate-Palmolive Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE CL opened at $91.90 on Thursday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.28, a current ratio of 1.06 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 13.21. The business’s 50 day moving average is $88.08 and its two-hundred day moving average is $81.99. The company has a market cap of $75.40 billion, a P/E ratio of 29.08, a P/E/G ratio of 3.37 and a beta of 0.42. Colgate-Palmolive has a 12 month low of $67.62 and a 12 month high of $92.54.

Colgate-Palmolive (NYSE:CL) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Friday, April 26th. The company reported $0.86 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.82 by $0.04. The company had revenue of $5.07 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.96 billion. Colgate-Palmolive had a return on equity of 485.40% and a net margin of 13.22%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 6.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $0.73 EPS. On average, equities analysts expect that Colgate-Palmolive will post 3.52 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. Shareholders of record on Monday, April 22nd will be given a $0.50 dividend. This is an increase from Colgate-Palmolive’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.48. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.18%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, April 19th. Colgate-Palmolive’s payout ratio is currently 63.29%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages have commented on CL. Citigroup raised their price objective on Colgate-Palmolive from $95.00 to $100.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 16th. TheStreet upgraded Colgate-Palmolive from a “c+” rating to a “b+” rating in a report on Friday, January 26th. Royal Bank of Canada lifted their price target on Colgate-Palmolive from $88.00 to $95.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a report on Monday. Raymond James upgraded Colgate-Palmolive from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $91.00 price target for the company in a report on Monday, January 29th. Finally, StockNews.com lowered Colgate-Palmolive from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 20th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and thirteen have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Colgate-Palmolive presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $91.44.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, CEO Noel R. Wallace sold 50,000 shares of Colgate-Palmolive stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $83.15, for a total transaction of $4,157,500.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 274,179 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $22,797,983.85. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. In other news, insider Jennifer Daniels sold 5,790 shares of Colgate-Palmolive stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $83.96, for a total transaction of $486,128.40. Following the sale, the insider now owns 63,236 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $5,309,294.56. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CEO Noel R. Wallace sold 50,000 shares of Colgate-Palmolive stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $83.15, for a total value of $4,157,500.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 274,179 shares in the company, valued at approximately $22,797,983.85. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 159,048 shares of company stock valued at $13,336,846 in the last three months. Company insiders own 0.37% of the company’s stock.

Colgate-Palmolive 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.