Colgate-Palmolive (NYSE:CL) Shares Purchased by Sciencast Management LP

Sciencast Management LP grew its position in shares of Colgate-Palmolive (NYSE:CL) by 769.1% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm owned 33,503 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 29,648 shares during the quarter. Colgate-Palmolive accounts for 0.8% of Sciencast Management LP’s portfolio, making the stock its 8th largest position. Sciencast Management LP’s holdings in Colgate-Palmolive were worth $3,046,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of CL. Kohmann Bosshard Financial Services LLC bought a new stake in Colgate-Palmolive in the fourth quarter worth about $26,000. Centricity Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Colgate-Palmolive in the 4th quarter worth approximately $27,000. Union Bancaire Privee UBP SA bought a new stake in shares of Colgate-Palmolive in the 4th quarter worth approximately $32,000. Briaud Financial Planning Inc acquired a new stake in Colgate-Palmolive during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $32,000. Finally, Wintrust Investments LLC bought a new stake in Colgate-Palmolive during the fourth quarter worth approximately $33,000. Institutional investors own 80.41% of the company’s stock.

Colgate-Palmolive Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE CL opened at $90.30 on Friday. Colgate-Palmolive has a one year low of $85.32 and a one year high of $109.30. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $89.33 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $94.27. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 13.40, a current ratio of 0.92 and a quick ratio of 0.58. The company has a market capitalization of $73.28 billion, a P/E ratio of 25.65, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.20 and a beta of 0.40.

Colgate-Palmolive (NYSE:CL) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Friday, January 31st. The company reported $0.91 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate 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 in the previous year, the business posted $0.87 earnings per share. Analysts anticipate that Colgate-Palmolive will post 3.75 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Colgate-Palmolive Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 15th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, April 17th will be issued a dividend of $0.52 per share. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, April 17th. This represents a $2.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.30%. This is an increase from Colgate-Palmolive’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.50. Colgate-Palmolive’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 56.82%.

Colgate-Palmolive announced that its Board of Directors has initiated a share buyback program on Thursday, March 20th that allows the company to repurchase $5.00 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization allows the company to repurchase up to 6.8% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase programs are usually a sign that the company’s management believes its stock is undervalued.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts have recently commented on CL shares. Morgan Stanley cut their price objective on Colgate-Palmolive from $111.00 to $104.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their target price on Colgate-Palmolive from $92.00 to $83.00 and set an “underweight” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, January 7th. StockNews.com cut Colgate-Palmolive from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, March 14th. UBS Group reduced their price objective on shares of Colgate-Palmolive from $104.00 to $100.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their target price on shares of Colgate-Palmolive from $97.00 to $99.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, March 14th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have given a hold rating and eleven have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $101.72.

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.