Colgate-Palmolive (NYSE:CL) Holdings Lifted by Congress Wealth Management LLC DE

Congress Wealth Management LLC DE grew its holdings in shares of Colgate-Palmolive (NYSE:CL) by 5.9% during the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 159,069 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 8,792 shares during the quarter. Congress Wealth Management LLC DE’s holdings in Colgate-Palmolive were worth $14,461,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in CL. Chicago Partners Investment Group LLC raised its stake in Colgate-Palmolive by 16.2% during the 4th quarter. Chicago Partners Investment Group LLC now owns 6,752 shares of the company’s stock valued at $591,000 after acquiring an additional 943 shares in the last quarter. Peak Financial Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Colgate-Palmolive during the fourth quarter valued at about $1,315,000. Fiduciary Alliance LLC acquired a new stake in Colgate-Palmolive in the fourth quarter worth about $4,066,000. Impact Partnership Wealth LLC bought a new position in Colgate-Palmolive in the 4th quarter valued at about $803,000. Finally, Barclays PLC increased its stake in Colgate-Palmolive by 38.7% during the 3rd quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 7,644,189 shares of the company’s stock valued at $793,542,000 after buying an additional 2,132,747 shares during the period. 80.41% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Colgate-Palmolive Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:CL opened at $90.91 on Tuesday. The company’s fifty day moving average is $89.40 and its two-hundred day moving average is $93.95. The company has a market cap of $73.78 billion, a P/E ratio of 25.83, 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 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 results on Friday, January 31st. The company reported $0.91 earnings per share 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 quarter last year, the business earned $0.87 EPS. Equities analysts expect that Colgate-Palmolive will post 3.75 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Colgate-Palmolive announced that its board has initiated a share repurchase program on Thursday, March 20th that authorizes the company to repurchase $5.00 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the company to buy up to 6.8% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase programs are often an indication that the company’s leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

Colgate-Palmolive Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 15th. Investors of record on Thursday, April 17th will be issued a dividend of $0.52 per share. This is a boost from Colgate-Palmolive’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.50. This represents a $2.08 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.29%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, April 17th. Colgate-Palmolive’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 56.82%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts have recently issued reports on CL shares. Raymond James reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $105.00 price objective (down from $110.00) on shares of Colgate-Palmolive in a report on Monday, February 3rd. UBS Group decreased their price target on Colgate-Palmolive from $104.00 to $100.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. StockNews.com downgraded Colgate-Palmolive from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their target price on Colgate-Palmolive from $92.00 to $83.00 and set an “underweight” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, January 7th. Finally, Morgan Stanley cut their price target on shares of Colgate-Palmolive from $111.00 to $104.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Monday, February 3rd. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have given a hold rating and eleven have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Colgate-Palmolive currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $101.72.

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.