Colgate-Palmolive (CL) to Issue Quarterly Dividend of $0.50 on May 15th

Colgate-Palmolive (NYSE:CL) announced a quarterly dividend on Thursday, March 14th, RTT News reports. Shareholders of record on Monday, April 22nd will be given a dividend of 0.50 per share on Wednesday, May 15th. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.32%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, April 19th. This is an increase from Colgate-Palmolive’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.48.

Colgate-Palmolive has raised its dividend payment by an average of 3.0% per year over the last three years and has increased its dividend annually for the last 62 consecutive years. Colgate-Palmolive has a dividend payout ratio of 50.4% indicating that its dividend is sufficiently covered by earnings. Equities research analysts expect Colgate-Palmolive to earn $3.80 per share next year, which means the company should continue to be able to cover its $1.92 annual dividend with an expected future payout ratio of 50.5%.

Colgate-Palmolive Stock Performance

Colgate-Palmolive stock opened at $86.16 on Wednesday. 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 stock has a market cap of $70.82 billion, a PE ratio of 30.99, a P/E/G ratio of 3.28 and a beta of 0.42. Colgate-Palmolive has a 12-month low of $67.62 and a 12-month high of $90.37. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $86.92 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $80.58.

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

Insider Activity

In other Colgate-Palmolive news, Director C Martin Harris sold 2,760 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, January 31st. The shares were 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 transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. In other news, Director C Martin Harris sold 2,760 shares of Colgate-Palmolive stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, January 31st. The stock was sold at an average price of $84.50, for a total transaction of $233,220.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 19,272 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,628,484. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, insider Jennifer Daniels sold 3,538 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred 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 $5,054,629.66. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 232,371 shares of company stock worth $19,505,099 over the last ninety days. Company insiders own 0.37% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Colgate-Palmolive

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Garner Asset Management Corp purchased a new position in Colgate-Palmolive in the 4th quarter worth $30,000. Quarry LP increased its holdings in shares of Colgate-Palmolive by 48.2% in the second quarter. Quarry LP now owns 446 shares of the company’s stock worth $34,000 after buying an additional 145 shares during the period. Tyler Stone Wealth Management bought a new stake in shares of Colgate-Palmolive in the 2nd quarter valued at about $65,000. Dark Forest Capital Management LP boosted its holdings in Colgate-Palmolive by 163.5% during the 1st quarter. Dark Forest Capital Management LP now owns 917 shares of the company’s stock valued at $69,000 after acquiring an additional 569 shares during the period. Finally, Coppell Advisory Solutions Corp. bought a new position in Colgate-Palmolive during the 4th quarter worth approximately $92,000. 80.41% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

CL has been the topic of several recent research reports. Stifel Nicolaus lifted their target price on Colgate-Palmolive from $89.00 to $94.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, April 10th. The Goldman Sachs Group assumed coverage on shares of Colgate-Palmolive in a report on Friday, March 1st. They set a “buy” rating and a $93.00 price target for the company. Citigroup increased their price objective on shares of Colgate-Palmolive from $95.00 to $100.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday. UBS Group boosted their target price on shares of Colgate-Palmolive from $93.00 to $95.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, January 29th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price target on Colgate-Palmolive from $88.00 to $90.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, January 18th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and thirteen have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $89.50.

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.