Traders Buy Large Volume of Colgate-Palmolive Call Options (NYSE:CL)

Colgate-Palmolive (NYSE:CL - Get Free Report) saw unusually large options trading on Thursday. Traders acquired 30,063 call options on the stock. This represents an increase of approximately 571% compared to the average daily volume of 4,482 call options.

Colgate-Palmolive Stock Performance

CL traded down $0.05 during midday trading on Thursday, reaching $86.70. The company had a trading volume of 4,880,776 shares, compared to its average volume of 4,551,916. The company has a quick ratio of 0.71, a current ratio of 1.11 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 8.59. The business has a 50-day moving average of $86.97 and a two-hundred day moving average of $80.63. The company has a market cap of $71.27 billion, a P/E ratio of 31.21, a P/E/G ratio of 3.24 and a beta of 0.42. Colgate-Palmolive has a 1 year low of $67.62 and a 1 year high of $90.37.

Colgate-Palmolive (NYSE:CL - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Friday, January 26th. The company reported $0.87 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.85 by $0.02. Colgate-Palmolive had a return on equity of 509.75% and a net margin of 11.82%. The business had revenue of $4.95 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $4.89 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $0.77 earnings per share. The business's quarterly revenue was up 6.9% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Colgate-Palmolive will post 3.49 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Colgate-Palmolive Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, May 15th. Investors of record on Monday, April 22nd will be given a dividend of $0.50 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, April 19th. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.31%. This is a boost from Colgate-Palmolive's previous quarterly dividend of $0.48. Colgate-Palmolive's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 69.06%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts recently issued reports on CL shares. UBS Group increased their price objective on Colgate-Palmolive from $93.00 to $95.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Monday, January 29th. The Goldman Sachs Group initiated coverage on Colgate-Palmolive in a research report on Friday, March 1st. They set a "buy" rating and a $93.00 price target on the stock. Barclays lifted their price objective on Colgate-Palmolive from $82.00 to $84.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Friday, April 12th. Citigroup lifted their price objective on Colgate-Palmolive from $95.00 to $100.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday. Finally, TheStreet upgraded Colgate-Palmolive from a "c+" rating to a "b+" rating in a research report on Friday, January 26th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and thirteen have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $89.50.

Insider Transactions at Colgate-Palmolive

In other news, insider Jennifer Daniels sold 3,538 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, February 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $84.67, for a total transaction of $299,562.46. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 59,698 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,054,629.66. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. In related news, insider Jennifer Daniels sold 3,538 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $84.67, for a total transaction of $299,562.46. Following the sale, the insider now owns 59,698 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $5,054,629.66. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, Director C Martin Harris sold 2,760 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, January 31st. The stock was sold at an average price of $84.50, for a total value of $233,220.00. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 19,272 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,628,484. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 232,371 shares of company stock worth $19,505,099. 0.34% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Colgate-Palmolive

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in CL. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP lifted its position in Colgate-Palmolive by 4.0% during the 1st quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 2,444,508 shares of the company's stock worth $185,376,000 after acquiring an additional 94,837 shares during the period. Covestor Ltd lifted its position in Colgate-Palmolive by 71.9% during the 1st quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 2,451 shares of the company's stock worth $186,000 after acquiring an additional 1,025 shares during the period. Mackenzie Financial Corp lifted its holdings in shares of Colgate-Palmolive by 8.5% in the 1st quarter. Mackenzie Financial Corp now owns 1,882,813 shares of the company's stock valued at $142,774,000 after buying an additional 146,936 shares during the period. First Western Trust Bank acquired a new position in shares of Colgate-Palmolive in the 1st quarter valued at about $569,000. Finally, Wsfs Capital Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Colgate-Palmolive in the 1st quarter valued at about $288,000. 80.41% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

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.