Colgate-Palmolive Company $CL Shares Purchased by Swiss Life Asset Management Ltd

Swiss Life Asset Management Ltd increased its stake in shares of Colgate-Palmolive Company (NYSE:CL) by 51.4% in the 3rd quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm owned 224,238 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 76,139 shares during the period. Swiss Life Asset Management Ltd’s holdings in Colgate-Palmolive were worth $17,926,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of CL. Norges Bank purchased a new position in shares of Colgate-Palmolive in the 2nd quarter valued at about $960,390,000. Invesco Ltd. boosted its position in Colgate-Palmolive by 13.1% during the third quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 8,467,993 shares of the company’s stock worth $676,931,000 after acquiring an additional 978,943 shares during the last quarter. Diamond Hill Capital Management Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Colgate-Palmolive by 46.7% during the 3rd quarter. Diamond Hill Capital Management Inc. now owns 8,077,549 shares of the company’s stock worth $645,719,000 after acquiring an additional 2,572,796 shares during the period. Ameriprise Financial Inc. increased its position in Colgate-Palmolive by 5.1% during the third quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 6,423,764 shares of the company’s stock worth $517,167,000 after purchasing an additional 314,584 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Amundi grew its stake in shares of Colgate-Palmolive by 41.6% during the 3rd quarter. Amundi now owns 6,294,445 shares of the company’s stock valued at $487,505,000 after buying an additional 1,850,412 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 80.41% of the company’s stock.

Colgate-Palmolive Stock Down 2.3%

CL opened at $85.49 on Friday. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $90.94 and its 200 day moving average price is $83.36. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 18.82, a current ratio of 0.83 and a quick ratio of 0.54. The stock has a market cap of $68.91 billion, a P/E ratio of 32.63, a P/E/G ratio of 3.92 and a beta of 0.28. Colgate-Palmolive Company has a 12 month low of $74.54 and a 12 month high of $99.33.

Colgate-Palmolive (NYSE:CL) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Friday, January 30th. The company reported $0.95 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.91 by $0.04. Colgate-Palmolive had a net margin of 10.45% and a return on equity of 353.72%. The business had revenue of $5.23 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.13 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $0.91 earnings per share. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 5.8% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, research analysts predict that Colgate-Palmolive Company will post 3.75 earnings per share for the current year.

Colgate-Palmolive Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 15th. Investors of record on Monday, April 20th will be issued a dividend of $0.53 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, April 20th. This is an increase from Colgate-Palmolive’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.52. This represents a $2.12 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.5%. Colgate-Palmolive’s dividend payout ratio is presently 79.39%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Colgate-Palmolive

In other news, COO Panagiotis Tsourapas sold 15,000 shares of Colgate-Palmolive stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $97.81, for a total value of $1,467,150.00. Following the transaction, the chief operating officer owned 10,415 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,018,691.15. The trade was a 59.02% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, insider John Hazlin sold 20,989 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $94.25, for a total transaction of $1,978,213.25. Following the sale, the insider directly owned 17,645 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,663,041.25. This represents a 54.33% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders sold a total of 184,683 shares of company stock valued at $17,486,693 over the last 90 days. Insiders own 0.34% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms have recently weighed in on CL. Argus reaffirmed a “hold” rating on shares of Colgate-Palmolive in a research note on Thursday, December 11th. The Goldman Sachs Group reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $100.00 price target on shares of Colgate-Palmolive in a report on Friday, February 20th. Morgan Stanley lifted their target price on Colgate-Palmolive from $87.00 to $100.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, February 2nd. Royal Bank Of Canada upgraded Colgate-Palmolive from a “sector perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $88.00 price objective for the company in a research note on Tuesday, December 9th. Finally, TD Cowen reiterated a “buy” rating on shares of Colgate-Palmolive in a research note on Monday, February 2nd. Eleven analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and six have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $94.75.

Colgate-Palmolive Profile

Colgate-Palmolive Company is a global consumer products company with a long history in household and personal care categories. The business traces its roots to the early 19th century and has evolved into a multinational manufacturer and marketer of everyday consumer goods focused on health, hygiene and home care.

The company’s core activities center on oral care, personal care, home care and pet nutrition. Its product portfolio includes toothpaste, toothbrushes and mouthwash in oral care; soaps, body washes and deodorants in personal care; dishwashing liquids, surface cleaners and other household products in home care; and scientifically formulated pet foods under its pet nutrition business.