TCW Group Inc. Makes New $1.43 Million Investment in Colgate-Palmolive (NYSE:CL)

TCW Group Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Colgate-Palmolive (NYSE:CL) during the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund acquired 17,996 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,428,000.

Other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Norges Bank acquired a new position in shares of Colgate-Palmolive during the 4th quarter worth about $731,843,000. FMR LLC boosted its position in shares of Colgate-Palmolive by 27.3% in the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 5,597,742 shares of the company’s stock valued at $398,055,000 after acquiring an additional 1,199,660 shares during the period. AEGON ASSET MANAGEMENT UK Plc bought a new stake in shares of Colgate-Palmolive in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $62,728,000. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. grew its stake in shares of Colgate-Palmolive by 92.2% in the fourth quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 1,436,054 shares of the company’s stock worth $114,468,000 after acquiring an additional 688,733 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Envestnet Asset Management Inc. increased its position in Colgate-Palmolive by 225.4% during the third quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. now owns 930,072 shares of the company’s stock worth $66,137,000 after acquiring an additional 644,205 shares during the period. 80.41% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Colgate-Palmolive Price Performance

Shares of Colgate-Palmolive stock traded down $0.43 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $93.30. 2,554,810 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 4,674,141. Colgate-Palmolive has a fifty-two week low of $67.62 and a fifty-two week high of $95.59. The company has a market cap of $76.55 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 29.53, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.44 and a beta of 0.40. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $90.38 and a 200 day simple moving average of $84.43. The company has a current ratio of 1.06, a quick ratio of 0.70 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 13.21.

Colgate-Palmolive (NYSE:CL) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Friday, April 26th. The company reported $0.86 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.82 by $0.04. The company had revenue of $5.07 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.96 billion. Colgate-Palmolive had a net margin of 13.22% and a return on equity of 485.40%. The company’s revenue was up 6.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $0.73 earnings per share. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Colgate-Palmolive will post 3.53 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Colgate-Palmolive Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, May 15th. Shareholders of record on Monday, April 22nd were paid a $0.50 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, April 19th. This represents a $2.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.14%. This is a positive change from Colgate-Palmolive’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.48. Colgate-Palmolive’s payout ratio is currently 63.29%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms have issued reports on CL. Barclays raised their price target on shares of Colgate-Palmolive from $84.00 to $85.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 30th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their target price on Colgate-Palmolive from $90.00 to $92.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Monday, April 29th. UBS Group upped their price target on Colgate-Palmolive from $93.00 to $95.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, January 29th. StockNews.com lowered Colgate-Palmolive from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 20th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus upped their target price on Colgate-Palmolive from $94.00 to $95.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, April 29th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fourteen have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $92.35.

Insider Transactions at Colgate-Palmolive

In related news, insider John W. Kooyman sold 3,497 shares of Colgate-Palmolive stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, May 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $93.47, for a total value of $326,864.59. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 3,181 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $297,328.07. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. In other Colgate-Palmolive news, insider Sally Massey sold 12,226 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, May 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $94.06, for a total transaction of $1,149,977.56. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 13,924 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,309,691.44. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, insider John W. Kooyman sold 3,497 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, May 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $93.47, for a total value of $326,864.59. Following the sale, the insider now owns 3,181 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $297,328.07. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 0.34% 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.