Welch & Forbes LLC Sells 2,105 Shares of Colgate-Palmolive (NYSE:CL)

Welch & Forbes LLC decreased its position in shares of Colgate-Palmolive (NYSE:CL) by 3.1% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 66,433 shares of the company’s stock after selling 2,105 shares during the quarter. Welch & Forbes LLC’s holdings in Colgate-Palmolive were worth $5,295,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Morgan Stanley lifted its holdings in shares of Colgate-Palmolive by 3.2% in the third quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 16,815,987 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,195,785,000 after buying an additional 514,559 shares in the last quarter. Northern Trust Corp grew its holdings in Colgate-Palmolive by 3.3% during the 3rd quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 9,452,931 shares of the company’s stock valued at $672,198,000 after buying an additional 305,862 shares in the last quarter. American Century Companies Inc. increased its position in Colgate-Palmolive by 2.0% in the third quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 6,590,405 shares of the company’s stock worth $468,644,000 after purchasing an additional 127,805 shares during the last quarter. FMR LLC raised its stake in Colgate-Palmolive by 27.3% during the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 5,597,742 shares of the company’s stock valued at $398,055,000 after purchasing an additional 1,199,660 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Nordea Investment Management AB lifted its position in Colgate-Palmolive by 10.1% during the third quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 5,455,384 shares of the company’s stock valued at $390,005,000 after purchasing an additional 500,916 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 80.41% of the company’s stock.

Colgate-Palmolive Stock Up 1.0 %

Shares of NYSE:CL traded up $0.90 during trading on Tuesday, reaching $94.08. The stock had a trading volume of 3,987,097 shares, compared to its average volume of 4,665,950. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $88.64 and its 200 day simple moving average is $82.63. The company has a current ratio of 1.06, a quick ratio of 0.70 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 13.21. Colgate-Palmolive has a one year low of $67.62 and a one year high of $94.21. The company has a market capitalization of $77.19 billion, a P/E ratio of 29.77, a PEG ratio of 3.43 and a beta of 0.40.

Colgate-Palmolive (NYSE:CL) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Friday, April 26th. The company reported $0.86 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.82 by $0.04. Colgate-Palmolive had a return on equity of 485.40% and a net margin of 13.22%. The firm had revenue of $5.07 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.96 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $0.73 EPS. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 6.2% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, research analysts expect that Colgate-Palmolive will post 3.52 EPS for the current fiscal 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 issued a dividend of $0.50 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, April 19th. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.13%. This is an increase from Colgate-Palmolive’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.48. Colgate-Palmolive’s dividend payout ratio is 63.29%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Colgate-Palmolive

In other Colgate-Palmolive news, CEO Noel R. Wallace sold 50,000 shares of Colgate-Palmolive 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 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 SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. In related news, insider Jennifer Daniels sold 3,538 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $84.67, for a total transaction of $299,562.46. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 59,698 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $5,054,629.66. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, CEO Noel R. Wallace sold 50,000 shares of the company’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 directly owns 274,179 shares in the company, valued at $22,797,983.85. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders have sold 159,048 shares of company stock worth $13,336,846. 0.34% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages recently commented on CL. StockNews.com downgraded shares of Colgate-Palmolive from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 20th. Evercore ISI lifted their price objective on shares of Colgate-Palmolive from $90.00 to $96.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, April 8th. Barclays increased their target price on shares of Colgate-Palmolive from $84.00 to $85.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 30th. Stifel Nicolaus upped their price target on shares of Colgate-Palmolive from $94.00 to $95.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, April 29th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada boosted their price objective on Colgate-Palmolive from $88.00 to $95.00 and gave the company a “sector perform” rating in a report on Monday, April 29th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and thirteen have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $91.44.

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.