J. Safra Sarasin Holding AG Has $66.65 Million Stock Holdings in Colgate-Palmolive Company $CL

Key Points

• J. Safra Sarasin Holding AG reduced its holdings in Colgate-Palmolive by 16.6% during Q2, now owning approximately $66.65 million worth of shares, making it the fund's 25th largest position.
• Institutional investors own over 80% of Colgate-Palmolive's stock, with several firms significantly increasing their stakes in the company during the first quarter of this year.
• Colgate-Palmolive recently reported better-than-expected earnings for the quarter, with a net margin of 14.55% and a declared quarterly dividend of $0.52 per share, indicating a yield of 2.6%.

J. Safra Sarasin Holding AG decreased its holdings in shares of Colgate-Palmolive Company (NYSE:CL - Free Report) by 16.6% during the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 733,299 shares of the company's stock after selling 145,570 shares during the period. Colgate-Palmolive makes up about 1.2% of J. Safra Sarasin Holding AG's portfolio, making the stock its 25th largest position. J. Safra Sarasin Holding AG owned approximately 0.09% of Colgate-Palmolive worth $66,651,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of CL. Westend Capital Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of Colgate-Palmolive by 111.1% in the first quarter. Westend Capital Management LLC now owns 266 shares of the company's stock valued at $25,000 after purchasing an additional 140 shares during the last quarter. Cornerstone Planning Group LLC raised its holdings in shares of Colgate-Palmolive by 1,913.3% in the first quarter. Cornerstone Planning Group LLC now owns 302 shares of the company's stock valued at $28,000 after purchasing an additional 287 shares during the last quarter. Saudi Central Bank purchased a new stake in shares of Colgate-Palmolive in the first quarter valued at about $29,000. Ransom Advisory Ltd purchased a new stake in shares of Colgate-Palmolive in the first quarter valued at about $33,000. Finally, Harel Insurance Investments & Financial Services Ltd. purchased a new stake in shares of Colgate-Palmolive in the first quarter valued at about $37,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 80.41% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts have recently commented on the stock. Citigroup lowered their target price on shares of Colgate-Palmolive from $108.00 to $105.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Monday, August 4th. Morgan Stanley decreased 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. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price objective on shares of Colgate-Palmolive from $99.00 to $95.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a report on Monday, August 4th. UBS Group decreased their price objective on shares of Colgate-Palmolive from $109.00 to $106.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Thursday, July 17th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price objective on shares of Colgate-Palmolive from $83.00 to $80.00 and set an "underweight" rating for the company in a report on Thursday, September 25th. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, three have given a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $97.27.

Colgate-Palmolive Price Performance

CL stock opened at $78.95 on Thursday. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $83.69 and a 200-day moving average of $88.50. The company has a current ratio of 0.89, a quick ratio of 0.57 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 6.79. Colgate-Palmolive Company has a 12 month low of $78.76 and a 12 month high of $102.61. The firm has a market capitalization of $63.81 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.18, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.16 and a beta of 0.34.

Colgate-Palmolive (NYSE:CL - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Friday, August 1st. The company reported $0.92 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.89 by $0.03. The company had revenue of $5.11 billion during 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%. Colgate-Palmolive's revenue was up 1.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the business earned $0.91 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Colgate-Palmolive Company will post 3.75 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Colgate-Palmolive Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 14th. Shareholders of record on Friday, October 17th will be given a dividend of $0.52 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, October 17th. This represents a $2.08 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.6%. Colgate-Palmolive's dividend payout ratio is presently 58.43%.

About Colgate-Palmolive

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.

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