Colgate-Palmolive (NYSE:CL) Shares Sold by California State Teachers Retirement System

California State Teachers Retirement System lessened its holdings in Colgate-Palmolive (NYSE:CL - Free Report) by 0.6% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 1,309,204 shares of the company's stock after selling 8,352 shares during the quarter. California State Teachers Retirement System owned about 0.16% of Colgate-Palmolive worth $119,020,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Northern Trust Corp lifted its position in Colgate-Palmolive by 11.7% during the fourth quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 9,497,819 shares of the company's stock valued at $863,447,000 after purchasing an additional 993,328 shares during the period. Gerber Kawasaki Wealth & Investment Management grew its holdings in Colgate-Palmolive by 19.1% during the fourth quarter. Gerber Kawasaki Wealth & Investment Management now owns 3,588 shares of the company's stock worth $326,000 after acquiring an additional 575 shares during the period. Boothbay Fund Management LLC raised its position in Colgate-Palmolive by 26.3% during the fourth quarter. Boothbay Fund Management LLC now owns 4,609 shares of the company's stock valued at $419,000 after acquiring an additional 959 shares in the last quarter. Susquehanna Fundamental Investments LLC acquired a new position in Colgate-Palmolive in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $9,011,000. Finally, Coldstream Capital Management Inc. boosted its position in Colgate-Palmolive by 15.8% in the 4th quarter. Coldstream Capital Management Inc. now owns 13,553 shares of the company's stock worth $1,232,000 after purchasing an additional 1,854 shares in the last quarter. 80.41% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Colgate-Palmolive Trading Down 0.3 %

Shares of NYSE CL traded down $0.27 during trading on Friday, hitting $90.42. 4,715,657 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 4,644,710. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $92.30 and a 200-day moving average price of $91.99. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 13.40, a quick ratio of 0.58 and a current ratio of 0.92. The firm has a market capitalization of $73.28 billion, a PE ratio of 25.69, a P/E/G ratio of 4.20 and a beta of 0.40. Colgate-Palmolive has a 12-month low of $85.32 and a 12-month high of $109.30.

Colgate-Palmolive (NYSE:CL - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Friday, April 25th. The company reported $0.91 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.86 by $0.05. Colgate-Palmolive had a net margin of 14.38% and a return on equity of 477.77%. The company had revenue of $4.91 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.92 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $0.86 earnings per share. Colgate-Palmolive's quarterly revenue was down 3.0% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities research analysts expect that Colgate-Palmolive will post 3.75 EPS for the current year.

Colgate-Palmolive Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 15th. Investors of record on Thursday, April 17th will be given a $0.52 dividend. This represents a $2.08 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.30%. This is a positive change from Colgate-Palmolive's previous quarterly dividend of $0.50. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, April 17th. Colgate-Palmolive's dividend payout ratio is presently 58.76%.

Colgate-Palmolive declared that its board has authorized a share repurchase program on Thursday, March 20th that allows the company to buyback $5.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization allows the company to purchase up to 6.8% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are often an indication that the company's management believes its stock is undervalued.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts recently issued reports on the stock. Stifel Nicolaus decreased their target price on shares of Colgate-Palmolive from $95.00 to $93.00 and set a "hold" rating for the company in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. StockNews.com raised shares of Colgate-Palmolive from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Tuesday. Royal Bank of Canada reaffirmed a "sector perform" rating and issued a $101.00 price target on shares of Colgate-Palmolive in a report on Wednesday, January 29th. Barclays lowered their price target on Colgate-Palmolive from $89.00 to $86.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, April 11th. Finally, UBS Group upped their target price on Colgate-Palmolive from $105.00 to $109.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, April 17th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have assigned a hold rating and twelve have issued a buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Colgate-Palmolive has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $102.39.

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.