Colgate-Palmolive (NYSE:CL) Shares Sold by Whittier Trust Co. of Nevada Inc.

Whittier Trust Co. of Nevada Inc. trimmed its holdings in Colgate-Palmolive (NYSE:CL) by 0.5% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 30,633 shares of the company’s stock after selling 144 shares during the quarter. Whittier Trust Co. of Nevada Inc.’s holdings in Colgate-Palmolive were worth $2,785,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

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

Colgate-Palmolive Price Performance

CL stock opened at $90.30 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 13.40, a quick ratio of 0.58 and a current ratio of 0.92. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $89.33 and its 200 day moving average price is $94.27. The firm has a market cap of $73.28 billion, a P/E ratio of 25.65, a PEG ratio of 4.20 and a beta of 0.40. Colgate-Palmolive has a 1 year low of $85.32 and a 1 year high of $109.30.

Colgate-Palmolive (NYSE:CL) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Friday, January 31st. The company reported $0.91 earnings per share (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 prior year, the company earned $0.87 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts expect that Colgate-Palmolive will post 3.75 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Colgate-Palmolive declared that its Board of Directors has authorized a share repurchase program on Thursday, March 20th that allows the company to buyback $5.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization allows the company to buy up to 6.8% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are often an indication that the company’s leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

Colgate-Palmolive Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 15th. Investors of record on Thursday, April 17th will be paid a dividend of $0.52 per share. This is an increase from Colgate-Palmolive’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.50. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, April 17th. This represents a $2.08 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.30%. Colgate-Palmolive’s dividend payout ratio is presently 56.82%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts recently weighed in on the company. TD Cowen decreased their price target on Colgate-Palmolive from $110.00 to $100.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, January 8th. Morgan Stanley reduced their target price on shares of Colgate-Palmolive from $111.00 to $104.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. Raymond James reissued an “outperform” rating and set a $105.00 price target (down from $110.00) on shares of Colgate-Palmolive in a report on Monday, February 3rd. Barclays lowered their price objective on Colgate-Palmolive from $96.00 to $83.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, January 17th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company cut their target price on Colgate-Palmolive from $92.00 to $83.00 and set an “underweight” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, January 7th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have given a hold rating and eleven have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Colgate-Palmolive currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target 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.