Commonwealth Equity Services LLC Increases Stake in Colgate-Palmolive Company (NYSE:CL)

Key Points

• Commonwealth Equity Services LLC increased its stake in Colgate-Palmolive by 2.2% in Q1, now holding 261,739 shares valued at approximately $24.5 million.
• Colgate-Palmolive announced a quarterly dividend of $0.52 per share, resulting in an annualized yield of 2.5% with a payout ratio of 58.43%.
• The company's latest earnings report revealed an EPS of $0.92 for the quarter, exceeding analyst expectations and marking a revenue increase of 1.0% year-over-year.

Commonwealth Equity Services LLC raised its stake in shares of Colgate-Palmolive Company (NYSE:CL - Free Report) by 2.2% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 261,739 shares of the company's stock after acquiring an additional 5,705 shares during the period. Commonwealth Equity Services LLC's holdings in Colgate-Palmolive were worth $24,525,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Westend Capital Management LLC increased its holdings in Colgate-Palmolive by 111.1% during the first quarter. Westend Capital Management LLC now owns 266 shares of the company's stock worth $25,000 after buying an additional 140 shares during the last quarter. Cornerstone Planning Group LLC increased its stake in shares of Colgate-Palmolive by 1,913.3% during the 1st quarter. Cornerstone Planning Group LLC now owns 302 shares of the company's stock worth $28,000 after purchasing an additional 287 shares during the last quarter. Vermillion Wealth Management Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Colgate-Palmolive in the 4th quarter worth approximately $31,000. Accredited Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in Colgate-Palmolive in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $34,000. Finally, Bernard Wealth Management Corp. bought a new position in Colgate-Palmolive during the fourth quarter valued at $33,000. 80.41% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts have recently commented on CL shares. Barclays upped their price target on Colgate-Palmolive from $86.00 to $87.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 15th. Wall Street Zen lowered shares of Colgate-Palmolive from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 7th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their price target on shares of Colgate-Palmolive from $99.00 to $95.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, August 4th. Morgan Stanley cut their price objective on shares of Colgate-Palmolive from $104.00 to $96.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a report on Monday, August 4th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company lowered their target price on shares of Colgate-Palmolive from $88.00 to $83.00 and set an "underweight" rating on the stock in a report on Monday, August 4th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have issued a hold rating and seven have assigned a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $98.92.

Colgate-Palmolive Price Performance

Shares of CL traded down $0.00 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $84.71. 4,133,894 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 4,850,591. The company has a current ratio of 0.89, a quick ratio of 0.28 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 6.79. The firm's 50 day simple moving average is $88.76 and its 200-day simple moving average is $90.15. The stock has a market cap of $68.46 billion, a PE ratio of 23.79, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.41 and a beta of 0.35. Colgate-Palmolive Company has a 12 month low of $82.40 and a 12 month high of $109.30.

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

Colgate-Palmolive Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 15th. Shareholders of record on Friday, July 18th will be issued a $0.52 dividend. This represents a $2.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.5%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, July 18th. Colgate-Palmolive's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 58.43%.

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.