Clark Capital Management Group Inc. Buys 6,903 Shares of Colgate-Palmolive Company $CL

Key Points

• Clark Capital Management Group Inc. increased its stake in Colgate-Palmolive by 23.0% during the first quarter, owning a total of 36,932 shares valued at $3,461,000.
• Colgate-Palmolive reported a quarterly EPS of $0.92, exceeding analysts' expectations of $0.89, and achieved revenue of $5.11 billion, also above the consensus estimate.
• The company declared a quarterly dividend of $0.52 per share, which represents an annualized yield of 2.4% and a payout ratio of 58.43%.

Clark Capital Management Group Inc. raised its stake in Colgate-Palmolive Company (NYSE:CL - Free Report) by 23.0% during the first quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 36,932 shares of the company's stock after buying an additional 6,903 shares during the period. Clark Capital Management Group Inc.'s holdings in Colgate-Palmolive were worth $3,461,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the company. Personal CFO Solutions LLC bought a new position in Colgate-Palmolive during the first quarter worth $285,000. Vision Capital Management Inc. bought a new position in Colgate-Palmolive during the first quarter worth $322,000. Autumn Glory Partners LLC raised its stake in Colgate-Palmolive by 67.4% during the first quarter. Autumn Glory Partners LLC now owns 8,905 shares of the company's stock worth $851,000 after buying an additional 3,586 shares during the last quarter. Financial Gravity Asset Management Inc. bought a new position in Colgate-Palmolive during the first quarter worth $2,166,000. Finally, Penserra Capital Management LLC raised its stake in Colgate-Palmolive by 398.6% during the first quarter. Penserra Capital Management LLC now owns 10,651 shares of the company's stock worth $997,000 after buying an additional 8,515 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 80.41% of the company's stock.

Colgate-Palmolive Stock Down 1.2%

Colgate-Palmolive stock traded down $0.98 during midday trading on Monday, hitting $84.15. 3,971,439 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 4,512,389. Colgate-Palmolive Company has a 52-week low of $82.40 and a 52-week high of $107.82. The stock has a market capitalization of $68.01 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 23.64, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.43 and a beta of 0.35. The business's 50-day moving average price is $86.61 and its 200-day moving average price is $89.73. The company has a quick ratio of 0.57, a current ratio of 0.89 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 6.79.

Colgate-Palmolive (NYSE:CL - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Friday, August 1st. The company reported $0.92 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.89 by $0.03. The business had revenue of $5.11 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $5.03 billion. Colgate-Palmolive had a net margin of 14.55% and a return on equity of 377.63%. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 1.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $0.91 earnings per share. On average, research analysts expect that Colgate-Palmolive Company will post 3.75 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Colgate-Palmolive Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 15th. Stockholders of record on Friday, July 18th were given a $0.52 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, July 18th. This represents a $2.08 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.5%. Colgate-Palmolive's payout ratio is 58.43%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms have weighed in on CL. Morgan Stanley decreased their price target on shares of Colgate-Palmolive from $104.00 to $96.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research note on Monday, August 4th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price target on shares of Colgate-Palmolive from $99.00 to $95.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research note on Monday, August 4th. Citigroup decreased their price target on shares of Colgate-Palmolive from $108.00 to $105.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research note on Monday, August 4th. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price target on shares of Colgate-Palmolive from $88.00 to $83.00 and set an "underweight" rating for the company in a research note on Monday, August 4th. Finally, UBS Group decreased their price target on shares of Colgate-Palmolive from $109.00 to $106.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, July 17th. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, four have assigned a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $98.92.

Colgate-Palmolive 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.