Colgate-Palmolive Company $CL Holdings Reduced by GUARDCAP ASSET MANAGEMENT Ltd

GUARDCAP ASSET MANAGEMENT Ltd trimmed its holdings in Colgate-Palmolive Company (NYSE:CL) by 18.1% in the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 1,301,977 shares of the company’s stock after selling 287,823 shares during the quarter. Colgate-Palmolive comprises approximately 8.4% of GUARDCAP ASSET MANAGEMENT Ltd’s portfolio, making the stock its 6th biggest position. GUARDCAP ASSET MANAGEMENT Ltd’s holdings in Colgate-Palmolive were worth $118,328,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in CL. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Colgate-Palmolive by 1.2% in the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 83,947,987 shares of the company’s stock worth $6,633,570,000 after acquiring an additional 1,026,985 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its holdings in Colgate-Palmolive by 1.4% in the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 22,103,901 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,754,657,000 after acquiring an additional 304,426 shares in the last quarter. Morgan Stanley increased its stake in shares of Colgate-Palmolive by 1.7% in the fourth quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 19,246,217 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,520,836,000 after purchasing an additional 323,367 shares in the last quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp raised its holdings in Colgate-Palmolive by 172.5% during the first quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 12,521,545 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,067,211,000 after acquiring an additional 7,927,238 shares during the period. Finally, Norges Bank bought a new stake in Colgate-Palmolive during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $861,670,000. Institutional investors own 80.41% of the company’s stock.

Colgate-Palmolive Stock Performance

Shares of CL stock opened at $91.90 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 13.82, a current ratio of 1.03 and a quick ratio of 0.67. Colgate-Palmolive Company has a 1 year low of $74.54 and a 1 year high of $99.33. The firm has a market capitalization of $73.26 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 36.47, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.54 and a beta of 0.33. The business has a fifty day moving average of $91.67 and a 200 day moving average of $89.99.

Colgate-Palmolive (NYSE:CL) last issued its earnings results on Friday, July 31st. The company reported $0.99 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.95 by $0.04. Colgate-Palmolive had a return on equity of 464.63% and a net margin of 9.68%.The firm had revenue of $5.36 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.36 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $0.92 earnings per share. Colgate-Palmolive’s revenue for the quarter was up 4.9% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, research analysts expect that Colgate-Palmolive Company will post 3.86 earnings per share for the current year.

Colgate-Palmolive Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 14th. Stockholders of record on Monday, July 20th were issued a $0.53 dividend. This represents a $2.12 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.3%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, July 20th. Colgate-Palmolive’s payout ratio is 84.13%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, Director John T. Cahill sold 4,170 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, August 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $93.37, for a total transaction of $389,352.90. Following the sale, the director directly owned 28,373 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,649,187.01. This represents a 12.81% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, CEO Noel R. Wallace sold 161,021 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, August 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $91.92, for a total value of $14,801,050.32. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 362,231 shares in the company, valued at approximately $33,296,273.52. The trade was a 30.77% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. Insiders own 0.43% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

CL has been the topic of several research reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their target price on Colgate-Palmolive from $104.00 to $103.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, August 3rd. Barclays upped their target price on Colgate-Palmolive from $80.00 to $87.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 21st. Weiss Ratings restated a “hold (c+)” rating on shares of Colgate-Palmolive in a report on Friday, July 31st. Royal Bank Of Canada raised their price objective on Colgate-Palmolive from $102.00 to $104.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday, August 3rd. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein reissued a “market perform” rating on shares of Colgate-Palmolive in a research report on Thursday. Twelve equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and seven have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Colgate-Palmolive currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $99.00.

Colgate-Palmolive Profile

Colgate-Palmolive Company is a global consumer products company with a long history in household and personal care categories. The business traces its roots to the early 19th century and has evolved into a multinational manufacturer and marketer of everyday consumer goods focused on health, hygiene and home care.

The company’s core activities center on oral care, personal care, home care and pet nutrition. Its product portfolio includes toothpaste, toothbrushes and mouthwash in oral care; soaps, body washes and deodorants in personal care; dishwashing liquids, surface cleaners and other household products in home care; and scientifically formulated pet foods under its pet nutrition business.