Legal & General Group Plc Lowers Stock Holdings in Colgate-Palmolive Company $CL

Legal & General Group Plc lessened its stake in Colgate-Palmolive Company (NYSE:CL) by 5.3% during the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 5,416,333 shares of the company’s stock after selling 300,641 shares during the period. Legal & General Group Plc owned 0.68% of Colgate-Palmolive worth $496,569,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Kemnay Advisory Services Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Colgate-Palmolive in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $25,000. CBIZ Investment Advisory Services LLC raised its stake in shares of Colgate-Palmolive by 86.7% during the fourth quarter. CBIZ Investment Advisory Services LLC now owns 323 shares of the company’s stock worth $26,000 after purchasing an additional 150 shares during the last quarter. TD Capital Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Colgate-Palmolive by 61.4% during the fourth quarter. TD Capital Management LLC now owns 326 shares of the company’s stock worth $26,000 after purchasing an additional 124 shares during the period. Triumph Capital Management grew its position in Colgate-Palmolive by 62.9% in the 4th quarter. Triumph Capital Management now owns 329 shares of the company’s stock valued at $26,000 after buying an additional 127 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Jessup Wealth Management Inc purchased a new position in Colgate-Palmolive in the 4th quarter valued at $26,000. 80.41% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts have commented on CL shares. Morgan Stanley restated an “overweight” rating and set a $104.00 price objective on shares of Colgate-Palmolive in a research report on Monday, August 3rd. Sanford C. Bernstein reiterated a “market perform” rating on shares of Colgate-Palmolive in a research note on Thursday, August 13th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reissued a “buy” rating and set a $101.00 price target on shares of Colgate-Palmolive in a report on Monday, August 3rd. Royal Bank Of Canada raised their price objective on shares of Colgate-Palmolive from $102.00 to $104.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Monday, August 3rd. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company boosted their target price on Colgate-Palmolive from $92.00 to $95.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 8th. Twelve equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and seven have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $99.00.

Colgate-Palmolive Stock Performance

NYSE:CL opened at $91.27 on Wednesday. The company has a current ratio of 1.03, a quick ratio of 0.67 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 13.82. The company has a market capitalization of $72.76 billion, a P/E ratio of 36.22, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.33 and a beta of 0.33. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $91.94 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $90.10. Colgate-Palmolive Company has a twelve month low of $74.54 and a twelve month high of $99.33.

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

Colgate-Palmolive Dividend Announcement

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

Insider Buying and Selling

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

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.