Russell Investments Group Ltd. Sells 210,274 Shares of Colgate-Palmolive Company (NYSE:CL)

Key Points

• Russell Investments Group Ltd. reduced its stake in Colgate-Palmolive Company by 13.0%, selling 210,274 shares in the first quarter.
• Colgate-Palmolive reported $0.92 EPS for the last quarter, surpassing analysts’ expectations of $0.89, with a revenue of $5.11 billion compared to estimates of $5.03 billion.
• The company has announced a quarterly dividend of $0.52, reflecting a 2.5% dividend yield, payable on August 15th to shareholders of record on July 18th.

Russell Investments Group Ltd. trimmed its position in Colgate-Palmolive Company (NYSE:CL - Free Report) by 13.0% during the first quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 1,401,151 shares of the company's stock after selling 210,274 shares during the quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. owned 0.17% of Colgate-Palmolive worth $131,203,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Personal CFO Solutions LLC acquired a new position in shares of Colgate-Palmolive during the first quarter worth $285,000. Vision Capital Management Inc. bought a new position in Colgate-Palmolive during the first quarter worth $322,000. Autumn Glory Partners LLC raised its stake in Colgate-Palmolive by 67.4% during the first quarter. Autumn Glory Partners LLC now owns 8,905 shares of the company's stock worth $851,000 after buying an additional 3,586 shares during the last quarter. Financial Gravity Asset Management Inc. bought a new position in Colgate-Palmolive during the first quarter worth $2,166,000. Finally, Summit Investment Advisors Inc. grew its position in shares of Colgate-Palmolive by 10.8% during the 4th quarter. Summit Investment Advisors Inc. now owns 32,710 shares of the company's stock worth $2,974,000 after buying an additional 3,187 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 80.41% of the company's stock.

Colgate-Palmolive Trading Up 0.4%

Colgate-Palmolive stock traded up $0.37 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $85.02. The stock had a trading volume of 4,148,279 shares, compared to its average volume of 5,238,320. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $88.31 and a 200-day simple moving average of $90.03. The stock has a market cap of $68.71 billion, a PE ratio of 23.88, a PEG ratio of 4.49 and a beta of 0.35. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 6.79, a current ratio of 0.89 and a quick ratio of 0.57. Colgate-Palmolive Company has a 52 week low of $82.40 and a 52 week high of $109.30.

Colgate-Palmolive (NYSE:CL - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Friday, August 1st. The company reported $0.92 earnings per share for the quarter, beating 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 company's revenue for the quarter was up 1.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $0.91 EPS. Analysts forecast that Colgate-Palmolive Company will post 3.75 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Colgate-Palmolive Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 15th. Investors of record on Friday, July 18th will be paid a dividend of $0.52 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, July 18th. This represents a $2.08 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.4%. Colgate-Palmolive's payout ratio is presently 58.43%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts have weighed in on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price target on shares of Colgate-Palmolive from $88.00 to $83.00 and set an "underweight" rating for the company in a research note on Monday, August 4th. Citigroup decreased their target price on shares of Colgate-Palmolive from $108.00 to $105.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Monday, August 4th. Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of Colgate-Palmolive from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 7th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price objective on shares of 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, Barclays upped their price objective on shares of Colgate-Palmolive from $86.00 to $87.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 15th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have assigned a hold rating and seven have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Colgate-Palmolive presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $98.92.

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.