Woodline Partners LP Sells 87,193 Shares of Colgate-Palmolive (NYSE:CL)

Woodline Partners LP lowered its stake in shares of Colgate-Palmolive (NYSE:CL - Free Report) by 76.8% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 26,299 shares of the company's stock after selling 87,193 shares during the period. Woodline Partners LP's holdings in Colgate-Palmolive were worth $2,391,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Kohmann Bosshard Financial Services LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Colgate-Palmolive during the fourth quarter worth $26,000. Centricity Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in Colgate-Palmolive during the 4th quarter worth about $27,000. Union Bancaire Privee UBP SA bought a new position in Colgate-Palmolive in the 4th quarter worth about $32,000. Briaud Financial Planning Inc purchased a new position in Colgate-Palmolive during the 4th quarter valued at about $32,000. Finally, Wintrust Investments LLC bought a new stake in shares of Colgate-Palmolive during the fourth quarter valued at about $33,000. 80.41% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Colgate-Palmolive Price Performance

Colgate-Palmolive stock traded down $0.71 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, hitting $91.72. The stock had a trading volume of 5,267,044 shares, compared to its average volume of 4,685,694. The company has a current ratio of 0.92, a quick ratio of 0.58 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 13.40. The firm's 50 day moving average is $91.90 and its 200 day moving average is $91.25. The firm has a market capitalization of $74.33 billion, a P/E ratio of 26.06, a P/E/G ratio of 4.20 and a beta of 0.39. Colgate-Palmolive has a one year low of $85.32 and a one year high of $109.30.

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

Colgate-Palmolive Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, May 15th. Investors of record on Thursday, April 17th were given 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 2.27%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, April 17th. Colgate-Palmolive's payout ratio is currently 58.76%.

Colgate-Palmolive announced that its Board of Directors has initiated a stock buyback program on Thursday, March 20th that permits the company to buyback $5.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization permits the company to purchase up to 6.8% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are generally a sign that the company's board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

CL has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. Raymond James reaffirmed an "outperform" rating and set a $105.00 target price (down previously from $110.00) on shares of Colgate-Palmolive in a report on Monday, February 3rd. Morgan Stanley reduced their target price on Colgate-Palmolive from $111.00 to $104.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. Citigroup raised their price target on Colgate-Palmolive from $103.00 to $108.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Monday, April 28th. UBS Group boosted their price objective on Colgate-Palmolive from $105.00 to $109.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday, April 17th. Finally, Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of Colgate-Palmolive from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 7th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have given a hold rating and ten have given a buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $102.12.

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.