Occidental Asset Management LLC Trims Stake in Colgate-Palmolive (NYSE:CL)

Occidental Asset Management LLC cut its stake in shares of Colgate-Palmolive (NYSE:CL) by 7.4% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 3,522 shares of the company’s stock after selling 281 shares during the quarter. Occidental Asset Management LLC’s holdings in Colgate-Palmolive were worth $281,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the business. &PARTNERS lifted its position in shares of Colgate-Palmolive by 0.7% in the fourth quarter. &PARTNERS now owns 17,643 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,406,000 after purchasing an additional 129 shares in the last quarter. Gladstone Institutional Advisory LLC raised its position in Colgate-Palmolive by 2.1% during the first quarter. Gladstone Institutional Advisory LLC now owns 6,329 shares of the company’s stock valued at $476,000 after acquiring an additional 133 shares in the last quarter. First Foundation Advisors raised its position in Colgate-Palmolive by 2.7% during the third quarter. First Foundation Advisors now owns 5,226 shares of the company’s stock valued at $372,000 after acquiring an additional 136 shares in the last quarter. Waldron Private Wealth LLC raised its position in Colgate-Palmolive by 2.7% during the third quarter. Waldron Private Wealth LLC now owns 5,361 shares of the company’s stock valued at $381,000 after acquiring an additional 140 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Gratus Capital LLC grew its holdings in Colgate-Palmolive by 1.4% during the third quarter. Gratus Capital LLC now owns 10,048 shares of the company’s stock valued at $714,000 after purchasing an additional 141 shares during the last quarter. 80.41% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Colgate-Palmolive Stock Up 0.1 %

Shares of Colgate-Palmolive stock traded up $0.10 on Friday, reaching $90.05. 3,459,748 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 3,881,994. Colgate-Palmolive has a one year low of $67.62 and a one year high of $90.37. The company has a 50-day moving average of $85.71 and a 200 day moving average of $79.13. 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 company has a market capitalization of $74.12 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 32.39, a PEG ratio of 3.42 and a beta of 0.42.

Colgate-Palmolive (NYSE:CL) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Friday, January 26th. The company reported $0.87 EPS 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 firm had revenue of $4.95 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.89 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $0.77 EPS. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 6.9% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Colgate-Palmolive will post 3.49 earnings per share for the current year.

Colgate-Palmolive Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, May 15th. Stockholders of record on Monday, April 22nd will be given 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 an increase 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 71.94%.

Insider Transactions at Colgate-Palmolive

In other news, CEO Noel R. Wallace sold 50,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated 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 completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 274,179 shares in the company, valued at $22,797,983.85. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. In related news, CEO Noel R. Wallace sold 50,000 shares of the firm’s 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 completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 274,179 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $22,797,983.85. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, CEO Noel R. Wallace sold 69,948 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $84.22, for a total value of $5,891,020.56. Following the sale, 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 sold 232,371 shares of company stock worth $19,505,099 over the last ninety days. 0.34% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. StockNews.com downgraded shares of Colgate-Palmolive from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 20th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price target on Colgate-Palmolive from $88.00 to $90.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, January 18th. The Goldman Sachs Group began 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. TheStreet upgraded Colgate-Palmolive from a “c+” rating to a “b+” rating in a research report on Friday, January 26th. Finally, Barclays lifted their price objective on Colgate-Palmolive from $75.00 to $82.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 16th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twelve have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $87.31.

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.