Fox Run Management L.L.C. Decreases Position in Colgate-Palmolive Company $CL

Fox Run Management L.L.C. lessened its holdings in Colgate-Palmolive Company (NYSE:CL) by 41.6% during the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm owned 12,658 shares of the company’s stock after selling 9,024 shares during the quarter. Fox Run Management L.L.C.’s holdings in Colgate-Palmolive were worth $1,000,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of CL. Norges Bank purchased a new position in shares of Colgate-Palmolive in the fourth quarter valued at about $861,670,000. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. increased its position in shares of Colgate-Palmolive by 8,040.1% in the fourth quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. now owns 4,655,987 shares of the company’s stock valued at $380,666,000 after acquiring an additional 4,598,789 shares during the period. Franklin Resources Inc. increased its position in shares of Colgate-Palmolive by 47.4% in the fourth quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 6,044,168 shares of the company’s stock valued at $477,610,000 after acquiring an additional 1,942,946 shares during the period. Amundi increased its position in shares of Colgate-Palmolive by 41.6% in the third quarter. Amundi now owns 6,294,445 shares of the company’s stock valued at $487,505,000 after acquiring an additional 1,850,412 shares during the period. Finally, Two Sigma Investments LP increased its position in shares of Colgate-Palmolive by 360.9% in the third quarter. Two Sigma Investments LP now owns 2,126,249 shares of the company’s stock valued at $169,972,000 after acquiring an additional 1,664,949 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 80.41% of the company’s stock.

Colgate-Palmolive Trading Up 1.9%

NYSE:CL opened at $87.74 on Wednesday. Colgate-Palmolive Company has a one year low of $74.54 and a one year high of $99.33. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 16.33, a current ratio of 1.02 and a quick ratio of 0.67. The company’s 50-day simple moving average is $86.60 and its 200 day simple moving average is $86.09. The firm has a market capitalization of $70.21 billion, a P/E ratio of 34.14, a PEG ratio of 4.47 and a beta of 0.33.

Colgate-Palmolive (NYSE:CL) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Friday, May 1st. The company reported $0.97 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.94 by $0.03. Colgate-Palmolive had a net margin of 10.04% and a return on equity of 386.76%. The business had revenue of $5.32 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.22 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $0.91 earnings per share. Colgate-Palmolive’s quarterly revenue was up 8.4% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, analysts forecast that Colgate-Palmolive Company will post 3.82 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Colgate-Palmolive Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, May 15th. Investors of record on Monday, April 20th were paid a dividend of $0.53 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, April 20th. This is an increase from Colgate-Palmolive’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.52. This represents a $2.12 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.4%. Colgate-Palmolive’s payout ratio is presently 82.49%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms have issued reports on CL. Morgan Stanley restated an “overweight” rating on shares of Colgate-Palmolive in a research report on Monday, May 4th. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price objective on shares of Colgate-Palmolive from $100.00 to $92.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, April 8th. UBS Group boosted their price objective on shares of Colgate-Palmolive from $98.00 to $100.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, May 4th. Bank of America decreased their price objective on shares of Colgate-Palmolive from $105.00 to $102.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, April 10th. Finally, Barclays boosted their price objective on shares of Colgate-Palmolive from $79.00 to $80.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, May 5th. Twelve analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and six have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $95.88.

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.