Colgate-Palmolive (NYSE:CL) Shares Sold by GUARDCAP ASSET MANAGEMENT Ltd

GUARDCAP ASSET MANAGEMENT Ltd lessened its position in Colgate-Palmolive (NYSE:CL) by 15.0% during the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The fund owned 4,741,723 shares of the company’s stock after selling 833,835 shares during the quarter. Colgate-Palmolive comprises approximately 7.0% of GUARDCAP ASSET MANAGEMENT Ltd’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 6th largest position. GUARDCAP ASSET MANAGEMENT Ltd’s holdings in Colgate-Palmolive were worth $431,070,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of CL. Guardian Partners Inc. acquired a new position in Colgate-Palmolive during the 4th quarter worth $306,000. KLP Kapitalforvaltning AS acquired a new stake in Colgate-Palmolive in the fourth quarter worth about $48,448,000. AXQ Capital LP bought a new position in Colgate-Palmolive in the 4th quarter valued at about $1,917,000. Umpqua Bank increased its stake in Colgate-Palmolive by 18.4% during the 4th quarter. Umpqua Bank now owns 3,433 shares of the company’s stock valued at $301,000 after buying an additional 533 shares during the period. Finally, Hillsdale Investment Management Inc. raised its position in shares of Colgate-Palmolive by 4.3% during the 4th quarter. Hillsdale Investment Management Inc. now owns 7,350 shares of the company’s stock worth $668,000 after buying an additional 300 shares in the last quarter. 80.41% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts recently commented on CL shares. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their price objective on shares of Colgate-Palmolive from $92.00 to $83.00 and set an “underweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, January 7th. TD Cowen dropped their price objective on Colgate-Palmolive from $110.00 to $100.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, January 8th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their target price on Colgate-Palmolive from $97.00 to $99.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, March 14th. Royal Bank of Canada reiterated a “sector perform” rating and issued a $101.00 price target on shares of Colgate-Palmolive in a research report on Wednesday, January 29th. Finally, Raymond James restated an “outperform” rating and set a $105.00 price objective (down previously from $110.00) on shares of Colgate-Palmolive in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. 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 company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $101.72.

Colgate-Palmolive Price Performance

NYSE CL opened at $90.30 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 13.40, a current ratio of 0.92 and a quick ratio of 0.58. The firm has a market capitalization of $73.28 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 25.65, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.20 and a beta of 0.40. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $89.33 and a 200-day simple moving average of $94.18. Colgate-Palmolive has a 52-week low of $85.32 and a 52-week high of $109.30.

Colgate-Palmolive (NYSE:CL) last issued its earnings results on Friday, January 31st. The company reported $0.91 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates 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 quarter last year, the company posted $0.87 earnings per share. Equities research analysts predict that Colgate-Palmolive will post 3.75 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Colgate-Palmolive Increases Dividend

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

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

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.