MML Investors Services LLC Decreases Stock Position in Colgate-Palmolive (NYSE:CL)

MML Investors Services LLC decreased its holdings in Colgate-Palmolive (NYSE:CL - Free Report) by 51.9% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 40,002 shares of the company's stock after selling 43,182 shares during the period. MML Investors Services LLC's holdings in Colgate-Palmolive were worth $3,637,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in CL. Kohmann Bosshard Financial Services LLC bought a new stake in Colgate-Palmolive in the 4th quarter worth approximately $26,000. Centricity Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in Colgate-Palmolive in the fourth quarter worth $27,000. Union Bancaire Privee UBP SA purchased a new position in shares of Colgate-Palmolive in the 4th quarter worth $32,000. Briaud Financial Planning Inc bought a new stake in shares of Colgate-Palmolive in the 4th quarter worth about $32,000. Finally, Wintrust Investments LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Colgate-Palmolive during the 4th quarter valued at about $33,000. Institutional investors own 80.41% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages have weighed in on CL. Barclays reduced their price objective on Colgate-Palmolive from $89.00 to $86.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, April 11th. StockNews.com upgraded Colgate-Palmolive from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Tuesday. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price objective on shares of Colgate-Palmolive from $83.00 to $88.00 and gave the stock an "underweight" rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 2nd. Royal Bank of Canada reissued a "sector perform" rating and issued a $101.00 target price on shares of Colgate-Palmolive in a research note on Wednesday, January 29th. Finally, Morgan Stanley dropped their price target on shares of Colgate-Palmolive from $111.00 to $104.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have issued a hold rating and twelve have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Colgate-Palmolive currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $102.39.

Colgate-Palmolive Stock Down 0.6 %

NYSE:CL traded down $0.56 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $90.13. The company's stock had a trading volume of 1,695,358 shares, compared to its average volume of 5,467,413. 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 $73.04 billion, a PE ratio of 25.61, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.20 and a beta of 0.40. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $92.30 and a 200-day moving average of $91.99. Colgate-Palmolive has a 1 year low of $85.32 and a 1 year high of $109.30.

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

Colgate-Palmolive announced that its board has approved a stock buyback plan on Thursday, March 20th that permits the company to buyback $5.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization permits the company to purchase up to 6.8% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback plans are typically an indication that the company's board believes its stock is undervalued.

Colgate-Palmolive Increases Dividend

The business 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 dividend of $0.52 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, April 17th. This represents a $2.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.31%. This is an increase from Colgate-Palmolive's previous quarterly dividend of $0.50. Colgate-Palmolive's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 58.76%.

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.