Nykredit A S Purchases Shares of 241,555 Colgate-Palmolive Company $CL

Key Points

• Nykredit A/S acquired 241,555 Colgate-Palmolive shares worth approximately $22.1 million during the second quarter. Institutional investors now own 80.41% of the company.
• Analysts maintain a generally positive outlook, with 13 Buy ratings and six Holds, producing a consensus “Moderate Buy” rating and a $99 price target.
• Colgate-Palmolive exceeded quarterly EPS expectations, reporting $0.99 versus $0.95 expected, while revenue rose 4.9% year over year to $5.36 billion. The company also declared a $0.53 quarterly dividend, representing a 2.4% yield.

Nykredit A S acquired a new position in shares of Colgate-Palmolive Company (NYSE:CL - Free Report) in the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor acquired 241,555 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $22,146,000.

A number of other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. Range Advisory LLC acquired a new position in Colgate-Palmolive during the second quarter worth $276,000. Corient Private Wealth LP grew its holdings in shares of Colgate-Palmolive by 29.0% in the 2nd quarter. Corient Private Wealth LP now owns 639,604 shares of the company's stock valued at $58,639,000 after acquiring an additional 143,812 shares in the last quarter. Amundi grew its holdings in shares of Colgate-Palmolive by 19.9% in the 2nd quarter. Amundi now owns 6,218,257 shares of the company's stock valued at $570,090,000 after acquiring an additional 1,033,918 shares in the last quarter. Groupe la Francaise increased its position in shares of Colgate-Palmolive by 47.9% in the second quarter. Groupe la Francaise now owns 205,115 shares of the company's stock valued at $18,750,000 after acquiring an additional 66,392 shares during the last quarter. Finally, VIRGINIA RETIREMENT SYSTEMS ET Al bought a new stake in Colgate-Palmolive during the second quarter worth about $111,110,000. 80.41% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

CL has been the subject of several recent research reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price target on Colgate-Palmolive from $104.00 to $103.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research report on Monday, August 3rd. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reaffirmed a "buy" rating and set a $101.00 price target on shares of Colgate-Palmolive in a research report on Monday, August 3rd. Jefferies Financial Group reissued a "hold" rating on shares of Colgate-Palmolive 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 company a "buy" rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 14th. Finally, Barclays boosted their target price on shares of Colgate-Palmolive from $80.00 to $87.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a report on Tuesday, July 21st. Thirteen equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and six have issued a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $99.00.

Colgate-Palmolive Price Performance

NYSE:CL opened at $87.50 on Friday. Colgate-Palmolive Company has a 12-month low of $74.54 and a 12-month high of $99.33. The firm has a market capitalization of $69.75 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 34.72, a P/E/G ratio of 4.08 and a beta of 0.33. The stock's 50 day moving average price is $90.79 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $89.25. The company has a quick ratio of 0.67, a current ratio of 1.03 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 13.82.

Colgate-Palmolive (NYSE:CL - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Friday, July 31st. The company reported $0.99 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.95 by $0.04. Colgate-Palmolive had a return on equity of 464.63% and a net margin of 9.68%.The business had revenue of $5.36 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $5.36 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $0.92 EPS. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 4.9% on a year-over-year basis. On average, analysts anticipate that Colgate-Palmolive Company will post 3.87 earnings per share for the current year.

Colgate-Palmolive Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced 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. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, October 20th. This represents a $2.12 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.4%. Colgate-Palmolive's payout ratio is presently 84.13%.

Insider Activity at Colgate-Palmolive

In related news, CEO Noel Wallace sold 161,021 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, August 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $91.92, for a total value of $14,801,050.32. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 362,231 shares in the company, valued at approximately $33,296,273.52. This represents a 30.77% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. Also, Director John Cahill sold 4,170 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, August 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $93.37, for a total transaction of $389,352.90. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 28,373 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,649,187.01. This represents a 12.81% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. In the last 90 days, insiders have sold 175,191 shares of company stock worth $16,110,903. Insiders own 0.43% of the company's stock.

About Colgate-Palmolive

Colgate-Palmolive Company NYSE: CL is a global consumer products company focused on oral care, personal care, home care and pet nutrition. Its products are sold in more than 200 countries and territories through retail stores, e-commerce channels and professional networks.

The company's portfolio includes Colgate toothpaste, toothbrushes and mouthwashes; Palmolive and Softsoap personal care products; Ajax and other household cleaning products; and Hill's Science Diet and Prescription Diet pet foods.

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