Colgate-Palmolive (NYSE:CL) Upgraded to Buy at StockNews.com

StockNews.com upgraded shares of Colgate-Palmolive (NYSE:CL) from a hold rating to a buy rating in a research report report published on Wednesday morning.

A number of other analysts have also recently issued reports on CL. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft cut Colgate-Palmolive from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and upped their target price for the company from $107.00 to $109.00 in a research report on Monday, September 9th. Stifel Nicolaus downgraded Colgate-Palmolive from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and decreased their price objective for the company from $105.00 to $101.00 in a report on Monday, October 28th. Jefferies Financial Group cut shares of Colgate-Palmolive from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and cut their target price for the company from $103.00 to $95.00 in a report on Wednesday, July 24th. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their target price on shares of Colgate-Palmolive from $100.00 to $92.00 and set an “underweight” rating for the company in a report on Monday, October 28th. Finally, UBS Group boosted their price target on Colgate-Palmolive from $119.00 to $122.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, September 4th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have assigned a hold rating and thirteen have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $105.11.

Colgate-Palmolive Price Performance

Shares of CL opened at $90.21 on Wednesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 9.46, a current ratio of 1.04 and a quick ratio of 0.68. Colgate-Palmolive has a 1-year low of $74.67 and a 1-year high of $109.30. The stock has a market cap of $73.70 billion, a PE ratio of 25.85, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.33 and a beta of 0.42. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $101.49 and a 200 day moving average price of $98.39.

Colgate-Palmolive Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 15th. Investors of record on Friday, October 18th will be issued a dividend of $0.50 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, October 18th. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.22%. Colgate-Palmolive’s dividend payout ratio is presently 57.31%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Colgate-Palmolive

In other news, Director Martina Hundmejean sold 2,313 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, August 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $103.86, for a total value of $240,228.18. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 11,755 shares in the company, valued at $1,220,874.30. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. 0.37% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Colgate-Palmolive

A number of large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Norden Group LLC purchased a new stake in Colgate-Palmolive during the 1st quarter worth about $532,000. Rehmann Capital Advisory Group acquired a new position in shares of Colgate-Palmolive in the first quarter valued at approximately $238,000. Advisory Services Network LLC lifted its stake in shares of Colgate-Palmolive by 2.7% during the first quarter. Advisory Services Network LLC now owns 69,038 shares of the company’s stock valued at $6,217,000 after buying an additional 1,809 shares during the period. Empirical Finance LLC grew its stake in Colgate-Palmolive by 3.4% in the 1st quarter. Empirical Finance LLC now owns 30,329 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,731,000 after acquiring an additional 996 shares during the period. Finally, Envestnet Portfolio Solutions Inc. raised its holdings in Colgate-Palmolive by 30.1% in the 1st quarter. Envestnet Portfolio Solutions Inc. now owns 24,251 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,184,000 after acquiring an additional 5,614 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 80.41% of the company’s stock.

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.