Colgate-Palmolive (NYSE:CL) Stake Boosted by Meiji Yasuda Life Insurance Co

Meiji Yasuda Life Insurance Co boosted its stake in Colgate-Palmolive (NYSE:CL - Free Report) by 50.3% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 18,532 shares of the company's stock after acquiring an additional 6,200 shares during the quarter. Meiji Yasuda Life Insurance Co's holdings in Colgate-Palmolive were worth $1,685,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Norges Bank bought a new position in Colgate-Palmolive during the 4th quarter worth approximately $912,375,000. Diamond Hill Capital Management Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Colgate-Palmolive during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $348,718,000. AMF Tjanstepension AB lifted its stake in Colgate-Palmolive by 1,088.8% during the fourth quarter. AMF Tjanstepension AB now owns 2,569,394 shares of the company's stock worth $233,584,000 after purchasing an additional 2,353,268 shares during the last quarter. Barclays PLC boosted its holdings in Colgate-Palmolive by 38.7% in the third quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 7,644,189 shares of the company's stock worth $793,542,000 after purchasing an additional 2,132,747 shares during the period. Finally, Raymond James Financial Inc. bought a new stake in Colgate-Palmolive during the fourth quarter valued at $132,405,000. 80.41% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research analysts have recently commented on the stock. TD Cowen decreased their price target on shares of Colgate-Palmolive from $110.00 to $100.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, January 8th. Citigroup upped their target price on Colgate-Palmolive from $103.00 to $108.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Monday, April 28th. Barclays cut their price target on Colgate-Palmolive from $89.00 to $86.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a report on Friday, April 11th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price objective on Colgate-Palmolive from $95.00 to $103.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Monday, April 28th. Finally, Raymond James reaffirmed an "outperform" rating and issued a $105.00 target price (down 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, nine have given a hold rating and twelve have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Colgate-Palmolive presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $102.39.

Colgate-Palmolive Price Performance

CL traded up $0.27 during trading on Monday, reaching $90.75. The stock had a trading volume of 4,084,332 shares, compared to its average volume of 4,639,319. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $92.26 and a two-hundred day moving average of $91.78. The company has a quick ratio of 0.58, a current ratio of 0.92 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 13.40. The firm has a market capitalization of $73.55 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 25.78, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.20 and a beta of 0.40. Colgate-Palmolive has a 1-year low of $85.32 and a 1-year high of $109.30.

Colgate-Palmolive (NYSE:CL - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Friday, April 25th. The company reported $0.91 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.86 by $0.05. Colgate-Palmolive had a return on equity of 477.77% and a net margin of 14.38%. The business had revenue of $4.91 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $4.92 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $0.86 earnings per share. The company's quarterly revenue was down 3.0% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Colgate-Palmolive will post 3.75 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Colgate-Palmolive Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 15th. Investors of record on Thursday, April 17th will be issued a $0.52 dividend. 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 2.29%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, April 17th. Colgate-Palmolive's payout ratio is presently 58.76%.

Colgate-Palmolive declared that its board has initiated a stock buyback plan on Thursday, March 20th that authorizes the company to repurchase $5.00 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the company to reacquire up to 6.8% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are usually a sign that the company's board believes its shares are undervalued.

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.