Colgate-Palmolive (NYSE:CL) Given Consensus Recommendation of “Moderate Buy” by Brokerages

Colgate-Palmolive (NYSE:CL) has received a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” from the fifteen ratings firms that are covering the firm, MarketBeat reports. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation and twelve have issued a buy recommendation on the company. The average 1 year price objective among brokers that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $89.50.

Several equities research analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. Citigroup upped their target price on shares of Colgate-Palmolive from $95.00 to $100.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday. Wells Fargo & Company upped their target price on shares of Colgate-Palmolive from $80.00 to $88.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Monday, January 29th. TheStreet raised shares of Colgate-Palmolive from a “c+” rating to a “b+” rating in a report on Friday, January 26th. The Goldman Sachs Group initiated coverage on shares of Colgate-Palmolive in a report on Friday, March 1st. They issued a “buy” rating and a $93.00 target price on the stock. Finally, UBS Group increased their price objective on shares of Colgate-Palmolive from $93.00 to $95.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, January 29th.

Insider Transactions at Colgate-Palmolive

In related news, Director C Martin Harris sold 2,760 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, January 31st. The shares were sold at an average price of $84.50, for a total value of $233,220.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 19,272 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,628,484. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. In other Colgate-Palmolive news, insider Jennifer Daniels sold 3,538 shares of Colgate-Palmolive stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 20th. The shares were sold at an average price of $84.67, for a total transaction of $299,562.46. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 59,698 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $5,054,629.66. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, Director C Martin Harris sold 2,760 shares of Colgate-Palmolive stock in a transaction on Wednesday, January 31st. The stock was sold at an average price of $84.50, for a total transaction of $233,220.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 19,272 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,628,484. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 232,371 shares of company stock valued at $19,505,099 in the last ninety days. 0.37% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Colgate-Palmolive

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in CL. Moneta Group Investment Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Colgate-Palmolive by 90,253.2% during the fourth quarter. Moneta Group Investment Advisors LLC now owns 15,974,451 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,258,627,000 after buying an additional 15,956,771 shares in the last quarter. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in shares of Colgate-Palmolive during the fourth quarter worth $731,843,000. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD lifted its holdings in shares of Colgate-Palmolive by 16.8% during the fourth quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 32,133,218 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,561,340,000 after buying an additional 4,625,472 shares in the last quarter. Renaissance Technologies LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Colgate-Palmolive by 151.6% during the first quarter. Renaissance Technologies LLC now owns 5,688,786 shares of the company’s stock worth $431,381,000 after buying an additional 3,427,400 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Morgan Stanley lifted its holdings in shares of Colgate-Palmolive by 41.7% during the fourth quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 11,370,549 shares of the company’s stock worth $895,886,000 after buying an additional 3,345,297 shares in the last quarter. 80.41% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Colgate-Palmolive Price Performance

NYSE:CL opened at $86.16 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $70.82 billion, a P/E ratio of 30.99, a PEG ratio of 3.26 and a beta of 0.42. Colgate-Palmolive has a one year low of $67.62 and a one year high of $90.37. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $86.92 and a 200 day moving average price of $80.58. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 8.59, a current ratio of 1.11 and a quick ratio of 0.71.

Colgate-Palmolive (NYSE:CL) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Friday, January 26th. The company reported $0.87 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.85 by $0.02. Colgate-Palmolive had a net margin of 11.82% and a return on equity of 509.75%. The company had revenue of $4.95 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.89 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $0.77 EPS. The business’s revenue was up 6.9% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts anticipate that Colgate-Palmolive will post 3.49 earnings per share for the current year.

Colgate-Palmolive Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, May 15th. Stockholders of record on Monday, April 22nd will be paid a dividend of $0.50 per share. This is a boost from Colgate-Palmolive’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.48. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.32%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, April 19th. Colgate-Palmolive’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 69.06%.

Colgate-Palmolive Company 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.