Colgate-Palmolive Company $CL Shares Sold by Alps Advisors Inc.

Key Points

• Alps Advisors cut its Colgate-Palmolive stake by 28.9% in the third quarter, selling 14,396 shares and retaining 35,379 shares valued at about $3.02 million.
• Colgate-Palmolive beat quarterly estimates, reporting EPS of $0.97 versus $0.93 expected and revenue of $5.37 billion, up 4.6% year over year.
• The company declared a quarterly dividend of $0.53 per share, equivalent to a 2.2% yield. Analysts’ consensus rating was “Moderate Buy,” with a $101.22 price target.

Alps Advisors Inc. cut its holdings in Colgate-Palmolive Company (NYSE:CL - Free Report) by 28.9% during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 35,379 shares of the company's stock after selling 14,396 shares during the quarter. Alps Advisors Inc.'s holdings in Colgate-Palmolive were worth $3,019,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Virginia Estate & Retirement Planning Advisors Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Colgate-Palmolive by 1,409.1% in the third quarter. Virginia Estate & Retirement Planning Advisors Inc. now owns 332 shares of the company's stock valued at $28,000 after buying an additional 310 shares in the last quarter. Parvin Asset Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Colgate-Palmolive during the 2nd quarter worth $32,000. Park Place Capital Corp grew its holdings in shares of Colgate-Palmolive by 55.5% in the 2nd quarter. Park Place Capital Corp now owns 356 shares of the company's stock worth $33,000 after acquiring an additional 127 shares during the last quarter. Gould Capital LLC grew its holdings in shares of Colgate-Palmolive by 38.7% in the 1st quarter. Gould Capital LLC now owns 412 shares of the company's stock worth $35,000 after acquiring an additional 115 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Montgomery Financial Services LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Colgate-Palmolive during the second quarter worth $36,000. 80.41% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Colgate-Palmolive Stock Performance

Shares of CL opened at $97.90 on Tuesday. The company has a market capitalization of $77.82 billion, a PE ratio of 38.39, a PEG ratio of 4.48 and a beta of 0.31. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 11.23, a quick ratio of 0.30 and a current ratio of 0.96. The company's 50 day moving average price is $90.26 and its 200 day moving average price is $90.04. Colgate-Palmolive Company has a 52 week low of $75.96 and a 52 week high of $101.18.

Colgate-Palmolive (NYSE:CL - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Friday, October 30th. The company reported $0.97 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.93 by $0.04. Colgate-Palmolive had a net margin of 9.65% and a return on equity of 607.88%. The company had revenue of $5.37 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.34 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $0.91 EPS. The company's revenue was up 4.6% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts expect that Colgate-Palmolive Company will post 3.92 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Colgate-Palmolive Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 13th. Investors of record on Tuesday, October 20th will be issued a dividend of $0.53 per share. This represents a $2.12 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.2%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, October 20th. Colgate-Palmolive's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 83.14%.

Insider Activity at Colgate-Palmolive

In other Colgate-Palmolive news, insider John Hazlin sold 23,376 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, November 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $99.15, for a total value of $2,317,730.40. Following the transaction, the insider directly owned 27,021 shares of the company's stock, valued at $2,679,132.15. This represents a 46.38% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. Also, CEO Noel R. Wallace sold 20,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, November 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $100.26, for a total value of $2,005,200.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 359,700 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $36,063,522. The trade was a 5.27% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Over the last 90 days, insiders sold 73,314 shares of company stock valued at $7,212,109. Insiders own 0.43% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

CL has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. Weiss Ratings cut Colgate-Palmolive from a "buy (b-)" rating to a "hold (c+)" rating in a research note on Friday, October 2nd. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reaffirmed a "buy" rating and set a $101.00 price objective (up from $99.00) on shares of Colgate-Palmolive in a research note on Monday, August 3rd. Raymond James Financial raised their target price on shares of Colgate-Palmolive from $100.00 to $102.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Monday, August 3rd. Citigroup raised their target price on shares of Colgate-Palmolive from $105.00 to $110.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Tuesday, July 14th. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada upped their price target on shares of Colgate-Palmolive from $104.00 to $105.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Monday, November 2nd. Thirteen analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and seven have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Colgate-Palmolive has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $101.22.

Colgate-Palmolive Profile

Colgate-Palmolive is a global consumer products company whose business spans oral care, personal care, home care and pet nutrition. Its products include toothpaste, toothbrushes, mouthwashes, soaps, shampoos, cleaning products and pet food.

The company's best-known brands include Colgate, Palmolive, elmex, Softsoap, Ajax and Hill's Pet Nutrition. It sells products through retail and other channels in markets around the world.

Founded in 1806 by William Colgate as a soap and candle business in New York City, the company has grown into an international manufacturer of household and personal care products.

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest reporting and unbiased coverage. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.