Colgate-Palmolive (NYSE:CL) Holdings Decreased by Korea Investment CORP

Korea Investment CORP reduced its holdings in Colgate-Palmolive (NYSE:CL) by 14.3% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 675,739 shares of the company’s stock after selling 113,081 shares during the period. Korea Investment CORP’s holdings in Colgate-Palmolive were worth $61,431,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Axxcess Wealth Management LLC lifted its position in shares of Colgate-Palmolive by 0.3% in the fourth quarter. Axxcess Wealth Management LLC now owns 38,786 shares of the company’s stock worth $3,526,000 after purchasing an additional 117 shares in the last quarter. Commonwealth Financial Services LLC lifted its position in Colgate-Palmolive by 4.5% in the 4th quarter. Commonwealth Financial Services LLC now owns 2,716 shares of the company’s stock worth $247,000 after buying an additional 118 shares in the last quarter. D Orazio & Associates Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Colgate-Palmolive by 4.2% during the 4th quarter. D Orazio & Associates Inc. now owns 2,982 shares of the company’s stock valued at $271,000 after buying an additional 120 shares during the period. Lantz Financial LLC grew its holdings in shares of Colgate-Palmolive by 0.6% during the 4th quarter. Lantz Financial LLC now owns 20,140 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,831,000 after acquiring an additional 122 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Pine Haven Investment Counsel Inc increased its stake in shares of Colgate-Palmolive by 1.0% in the fourth quarter. Pine Haven Investment Counsel Inc now owns 13,006 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,182,000 after acquiring an additional 130 shares during the last quarter. 80.41% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Colgate-Palmolive Trading Up 1.3 %

Shares of Colgate-Palmolive stock opened at $93.25 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 0.92, a quick ratio of 0.58 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 13.40. Colgate-Palmolive has a 1 year low of $85.32 and a 1 year high of $109.30. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $89.62 and its 200-day simple moving average is $93.80. The company has a market cap of $75.68 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 26.49, a PEG ratio of 4.20 and a beta of 0.40.

Colgate-Palmolive (NYSE:CL) last released its 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 net margin of 14.38% and a return on equity of 477.77%. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $0.87 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that Colgate-Palmolive will post 3.75 EPS for the current year.

Colgate-Palmolive declared that its board has approved a share repurchase program on Thursday, March 20th that allows the company to buyback $5.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization allows the company to repurchase up to 6.8% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are often a sign that the company’s board believes its shares are undervalued.

Colgate-Palmolive Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 15th. Investors of record on Thursday, April 17th will be paid a $0.52 dividend. This represents a $2.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.23%. This is a positive change from Colgate-Palmolive’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.50. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, April 17th. Colgate-Palmolive’s dividend payout ratio is presently 59.09%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts recently issued reports on the company. StockNews.com cut Colgate-Palmolive from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday. Morgan Stanley reduced their price target on Colgate-Palmolive from $111.00 to $104.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Monday, February 3rd. UBS Group dropped their price objective on Colgate-Palmolive from $104.00 to $100.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, February 3rd. Raymond James reissued an “outperform” rating and issued a $105.00 target price (down from $110.00) on shares of Colgate-Palmolive in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada restated a “sector perform” rating and set a $101.00 price target on shares of Colgate-Palmolive in a report on Wednesday, January 29th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have given a hold rating and eleven have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $102.06.

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.