Colgate-Palmolive (NYSE:CL) Raises Dividend to $0.52 Per Share

Colgate-Palmolive (NYSE:CL) declared a quarterly dividend on Thursday, March 20th, RTT News reports. Investors of record on Thursday, April 17th will be given a dividend of 0.52 per share on Thursday, May 15th. This represents a $2.08 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.30%. This is a 4.0% increase from Colgate-Palmolive’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.50.

Colgate-Palmolive has raised its dividend payment by an average of 3.6% annually over the last three years and has raised its dividend every year for the last 62 years. Colgate-Palmolive has a dividend payout ratio of 49.9% meaning its dividend is sufficiently covered by earnings. Research analysts expect Colgate-Palmolive to earn $4.03 per share next year, which means the company should continue to be able to cover its $2.00 annual dividend with an expected future payout ratio of 49.6%.

Colgate-Palmolive Price Performance

NYSE:CL opened at $90.29 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $73.28 billion, a PE ratio of 25.65, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.20 and a beta of 0.40. Colgate-Palmolive has a 12 month low of $85.32 and a 12 month high of $109.30. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $89.25 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $94.38. The company has a quick ratio of 0.58, a current ratio of 0.92 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 13.40.

Colgate-Palmolive (NYSE:CL) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Friday, January 31st. The company reported $0.91 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.90 by $0.01. Colgate-Palmolive had a return on equity of 477.77% and a net margin of 14.38%. During the same period last year, the company earned $0.87 EPS. On average, equities analysts anticipate that Colgate-Palmolive will post 3.75 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Colgate-Palmolive announced that its board has authorized a stock repurchase plan on Thursday, March 20th that authorizes the company to repurchase $5.00 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the company to reacquire up to 6.8% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are generally a sign that the company’s management believes its stock is undervalued.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms have recently commented on CL. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price target on shares of Colgate-Palmolive from $97.00 to $99.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, March 14th. Stifel Nicolaus lowered their price objective on Colgate-Palmolive from $95.00 to $93.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. StockNews.com cut Colgate-Palmolive from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, March 14th. Morgan Stanley reduced their target price on shares of Colgate-Palmolive from $111.00 to $104.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. Finally, Raymond James reissued an “outperform” rating and issued a $105.00 price target (down previously from $110.00) on shares of Colgate-Palmolive in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have issued a hold rating and eleven have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $101.72.

Institutional Trading of Colgate-Palmolive

An institutional investor recently raised its position in Colgate-Palmolive stock. Brighton Jones LLC grew its position in shares of Colgate-Palmolive (NYSE:CL) by 4.4% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 10,578 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 450 shares during the quarter. Brighton Jones LLC’s holdings in Colgate-Palmolive were worth $962,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period. 80.41% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.