Rathbones Group PLC Trims Holdings in Colgate-Palmolive (NYSE:CL)

Rathbones Group PLC cut its position in shares of Colgate-Palmolive (NYSE:CL) by 10.6% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 226,301 shares of the company’s stock after selling 26,919 shares during the quarter. Rathbones Group PLC’s holdings in Colgate-Palmolive were worth $20,573,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Kohmann Bosshard Financial Services LLC acquired a new position in Colgate-Palmolive in the 4th quarter valued at $26,000. Centricity Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Colgate-Palmolive in the fourth quarter valued at $27,000. Union Bancaire Privee UBP SA acquired a new position in Colgate-Palmolive in the fourth quarter valued at $32,000. Briaud Financial Planning Inc purchased a new position in Colgate-Palmolive during the fourth quarter worth about $32,000. Finally, Wintrust Investments LLC acquired a new stake in Colgate-Palmolive in the 4th quarter worth about $33,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 80.41% of the company’s stock.

Colgate-Palmolive Trading Down 2.7 %

CL opened at $89.21 on Tuesday. The stock has a market capitalization of $72.36 billion, a PE ratio of 25.34, a P/E/G ratio of 4.20 and a beta of 0.40. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 13.40, a current ratio of 0.92 and a quick ratio of 0.58. Colgate-Palmolive has a 12-month low of $85.32 and a 12-month high of $109.30. The firm’s fifty day moving average price is $90.23 and its 200 day moving average price is $93.04.

Colgate-Palmolive (NYSE:CL) last issued its earnings results on Friday, January 31st. The company reported $0.91 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.90 by $0.01. Colgate-Palmolive had a net margin of 14.38% and a return on equity of 477.77%. During the same period last year, the firm posted $0.87 EPS. As a group, research analysts expect that Colgate-Palmolive will post 3.75 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Colgate-Palmolive announced that its Board of Directors has authorized a share buyback program on Thursday, March 20th that allows the company to buyback $5.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization allows the company to repurchase up to 6.8% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are usually a sign that the company’s board believes its shares are undervalued.

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 paid a dividend of $0.52 per share. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, April 17th. This is a boost from Colgate-Palmolive’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.50. This represents a $2.08 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.33%. Colgate-Palmolive’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 59.09%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts have recently weighed in on CL shares. Stifel Nicolaus cut their price objective on shares of Colgate-Palmolive from $95.00 to $93.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, February 3rd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price target on shares of Colgate-Palmolive from $97.00 to $99.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, March 14th. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price objective on Colgate-Palmolive from $83.00 to $88.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, April 2nd. UBS Group lowered their price target on Colgate-Palmolive from $104.00 to $100.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. Finally, Piper Sandler cut their price objective on Colgate-Palmolive from $108.00 to $107.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, March 31st. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have given a hold rating and twelve have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $102.06.

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.