Kovitz Investment Group Partners LLC Boosts Stock Position in Colgate-Palmolive (NYSE:CL)

Kovitz Investment Group Partners LLC raised its stake in Colgate-Palmolive (NYSE:CL - Free Report) by 7.9% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 154,856 shares of the company's stock after acquiring an additional 11,351 shares during the period. Kovitz Investment Group Partners LLC's holdings in Colgate-Palmolive were worth $14,078,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Axxcess Wealth Management LLC lifted its position in Colgate-Palmolive by 0.3% during the 4th quarter. Axxcess Wealth Management LLC now owns 38,786 shares of the company's stock worth $3,526,000 after buying an additional 117 shares in the last quarter. Commonwealth Financial Services LLC increased its stake in Colgate-Palmolive by 4.5% during the 4th quarter. Commonwealth Financial Services LLC now owns 2,716 shares of the company's stock worth $247,000 after purchasing an additional 118 shares in the last quarter. Wescott Financial Advisory Group LLC raised its holdings in shares of Colgate-Palmolive by 3.5% during the fourth quarter. Wescott Financial Advisory Group LLC now owns 3,517 shares of the company's stock worth $320,000 after acquiring an additional 119 shares during the period. D Orazio & Associates Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Colgate-Palmolive by 4.2% in the fourth quarter. D Orazio & Associates Inc. now owns 2,982 shares of the company's stock valued at $271,000 after purchasing an additional 120 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Lantz Financial LLC lifted its stake in Colgate-Palmolive by 0.6% in the 4th quarter. Lantz Financial LLC now owns 20,140 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,831,000 after acquiring an additional 122 shares in the last quarter. 80.41% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Colgate-Palmolive Stock Performance

Shares of Colgate-Palmolive stock traded down $0.14 during trading hours on Wednesday, reaching $92.19. 3,237,002 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 4,670,714. The company has a quick ratio of 0.58, a current ratio of 0.92 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 13.40. The firm has a market capitalization of $74.77 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 26.19, a P/E/G ratio of 4.20 and a beta of 0.40. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $92.23 and a 200 day moving average price of $92.06. Colgate-Palmolive has a one year low of $85.32 and a one year high of $109.30.

Colgate-Palmolive (NYSE:CL - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Friday, April 25th. The company reported $0.91 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.86 by $0.05. Colgate-Palmolive had a return on equity of 477.77% and a net margin of 14.38%. The company had revenue of $4.91 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.92 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $0.86 EPS. The firm's quarterly revenue was down 3.0% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities research analysts expect that Colgate-Palmolive will post 3.75 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Colgate-Palmolive Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 15th. Investors of record on Thursday, April 17th will be given a $0.52 dividend. This is a positive change from Colgate-Palmolive's previous quarterly dividend of $0.50. This represents a $2.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.26%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, April 17th. Colgate-Palmolive's dividend payout ratio is 59.09%.

Colgate-Palmolive declared that its Board of Directors has initiated a stock repurchase program on Thursday, March 20th that permits the company to repurchase $5.00 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization permits the company to buy up to 6.8% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase programs are typically an indication that the company's leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

Analyst Ratings Changes

CL has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. StockNews.com raised Colgate-Palmolive from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday. Morgan Stanley lowered their target price on Colgate-Palmolive from $111.00 to $104.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price objective on shares of Colgate-Palmolive from $95.00 to $103.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Monday. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price objective on Colgate-Palmolive from $83.00 to $88.00 and gave the company an "underweight" rating in a report on Wednesday, April 2nd. Finally, Citigroup increased their price target on shares of Colgate-Palmolive from $103.00 to $108.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Monday. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have issued a hold rating and twelve have assigned a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, Colgate-Palmolive presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $102.39.

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.