Colgate-Palmolive Company (NYSE:CL) Position Lowered by Westpac Banking Corp

Key Points

• Westpac Banking Corp reduced its holdings in Colgate-Palmolive by 31.3%, owning 84,516 shares worth approximately $7.92 million after selling 38,462 shares.
• Colgate-Palmolive's latest quarterly earnings report showed an EPS of $0.92, exceeding expectations of $0.89, with revenue reaching $5.11 billion.
• The company declared a quarterly dividend of $0.52 per share, which equates to an annualized amount of $2.08 and a yield of 2.5%.

Westpac Banking Corp lessened its holdings in Colgate-Palmolive Company (NYSE:CL - Free Report) by 31.3% during the first quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 84,516 shares of the company's stock after selling 38,462 shares during the quarter. Westpac Banking Corp's holdings in Colgate-Palmolive were worth $7,919,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in CL. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its position in shares of Colgate-Palmolive by 0.6% during the 1st quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 81,758,257 shares of the company's stock worth $7,660,749,000 after purchasing an additional 455,198 shares during the last quarter. Northern Trust Corp raised its position in shares of Colgate-Palmolive by 11.7% during the 4th quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 9,497,819 shares of the company's stock worth $863,447,000 after purchasing an additional 993,328 shares during the last quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. raised its position in shares of Colgate-Palmolive by 34.5% during the 1st quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 7,980,387 shares of the company's stock worth $747,762,000 after purchasing an additional 2,045,191 shares during the last quarter. Deutsche Bank AG raised its position in shares of Colgate-Palmolive by 3.7% during the 1st quarter. Deutsche Bank AG now owns 7,176,598 shares of the company's stock worth $672,447,000 after purchasing an additional 253,604 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Invesco Ltd. raised its position in shares of Colgate-Palmolive by 5.0% during the 1st quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 6,867,209 shares of the company's stock worth $643,458,000 after purchasing an additional 329,291 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 80.41% of the company's stock.

Colgate-Palmolive Trading Down 1.9%

Shares of CL stock traded down $1.61 on Thursday, reaching $84.73. 3,497,168 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 5,245,398. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $88.41 and a two-hundred day moving average of $90.07. 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 1-year low of $82.40 and a 1-year high of $109.30. The stock has a market cap of $68.48 billion, a P/E ratio of 23.80, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.42 and a beta of 0.35.

Colgate-Palmolive (NYSE:CL - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly 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 business 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%. The business's revenue was up 1.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the business earned $0.91 EPS. On average, research analysts anticipate that Colgate-Palmolive Company will post 3.75 EPS for the current year.

Colgate-Palmolive Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 15th. Shareholders of record on Friday, July 18th will be given 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 is presently 58.43%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

CL has been the subject of several research reports. Wall Street Zen downgraded Colgate-Palmolive from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 7th. Barclays boosted 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. Citigroup cut their price target on Colgate-Palmolive from $108.00 to $105.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Monday, August 4th. Wells Fargo & Company cut their price target on Colgate-Palmolive from $88.00 to $83.00 and set an "underweight" rating for the company in a report on Monday, August 4th. Finally, Morgan Stanley cut their price target on Colgate-Palmolive from $104.00 to $96.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a report on Monday, August 4th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have given a hold rating and seven have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Colgate-Palmolive has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $98.92.

Colgate-Palmolive 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.