Dark Forest Capital Management LP Purchases New Position in Colgate-Palmolive Company $CL

Key Points

• Dark Forest Capital Management LP has made a new investment in Colgate-Palmolive, acquiring 60,262 shares valued at approximately $5.6 million during the first quarter.
• Several institutional investors have recently increased their holdings in Colgate-Palmolive, leading to 80.41% of the stock being owned by such entities.
• Colgate-Palmolive's earnings report revealed a stronger performance than expected, with an EPS of $0.92, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.89.

Dark Forest Capital Management LP purchased a new stake in shares of Colgate-Palmolive Company (NYSE:CL - Free Report) during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund purchased 60,262 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $5,647,000.

Other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Personal CFO Solutions LLC bought a new stake in Colgate-Palmolive in the first quarter worth $285,000. Vision Capital Management Inc. bought a new stake in Colgate-Palmolive in the first quarter worth $322,000. Autumn Glory Partners LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Colgate-Palmolive by 67.4% during the first quarter. Autumn Glory Partners LLC now owns 8,905 shares of the company's stock valued at $851,000 after purchasing an additional 3,586 shares in the last quarter. Financial Gravity Asset Management Inc. bought a new position in shares of Colgate-Palmolive during the first quarter valued at $2,166,000. Finally, Penserra Capital Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Colgate-Palmolive by 398.6% during the first quarter. Penserra Capital Management LLC now owns 10,651 shares of the company's stock valued at $997,000 after purchasing an additional 8,515 shares in the last quarter. 80.41% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts have recently issued reports on the company. UBS Group lowered their price target on Colgate-Palmolive from $109.00 to $106.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, July 17th. Barclays upped their price target on Colgate-Palmolive from $86.00 to $87.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a report on Tuesday, July 15th. Wall Street Zen downgraded Colgate-Palmolive from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Wednesday, May 7th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price objective on Colgate-Palmolive from $99.00 to $95.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research report on Monday, August 4th. Finally, Citigroup reduced their price objective on Colgate-Palmolive from $108.00 to $105.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Monday, August 4th. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, four have given a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Colgate-Palmolive currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $98.92.

Colgate-Palmolive Price Performance

CL stock traded down $0.14 during midday trading on Thursday, hitting $83.67. The company's stock had a trading volume of 6,202,383 shares, compared to its average volume of 4,300,718. 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 Company has a 12 month low of $82.40 and a 12 month high of $109.30. The company has a 50 day moving average of $86.82 and a two-hundred day moving average of $89.75. The firm has a market capitalization of $67.62 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 23.50, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.36 and a beta of 0.35.

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

Colgate-Palmolive Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 15th. Investors of record on Friday, July 18th were paid a dividend of $0.52 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, July 18th. This represents a $2.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.5%. Colgate-Palmolive's dividend payout ratio is presently 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.