Colgate-Palmolive (NYSE:CL) Shares Sold by Driehaus Capital Management LLC

Driehaus Capital Management LLC reduced its position in Colgate-Palmolive (NYSE:CL) by 31.9% in the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The fund owned 5,224 shares of the company’s stock after selling 2,446 shares during the quarter. Driehaus Capital Management LLC’s holdings in Colgate-Palmolive were worth $475,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

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

Colgate-Palmolive Trading Down 1.0 %

NYSE:CL opened at $89.91 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $72.86 billion, a PE ratio of 25.54, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.20 and a beta of 0.39. Colgate-Palmolive has a 52-week low of $85.32 and a 52-week high of $109.30. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $92.21 and a 200-day simple moving average of $91.53. The company has a quick ratio of 0.58, a current ratio of 0.92 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 13.40.

Colgate-Palmolive (NYSE:CL) last released its quarterly earnings results on Friday, April 25th. The company reported $0.91 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.86 by $0.05. Colgate-Palmolive had a net margin of 14.38% and a return on equity of 477.77%. The business had revenue of $4.91 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.92 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $0.86 earnings per share. The company’s quarterly revenue was down 3.0% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities research analysts expect that Colgate-Palmolive will post 3.75 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Colgate-Palmolive Increases Dividend

The business 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 represents a $2.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.31%. This is a positive change from Colgate-Palmolive’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.50. Colgate-Palmolive’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 58.76%.

Colgate-Palmolive announced that its board has initiated a stock buyback program on Thursday, March 20th that permits the company to buyback $5.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization permits the company to purchase up to 6.8% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are often a sign that the company’s board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts have recently issued reports on CL shares. Morgan Stanley dropped their target price on Colgate-Palmolive from $111.00 to $104.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, February 3rd. Stifel Nicolaus dropped their price objective on shares of Colgate-Palmolive from $95.00 to $93.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. Wells Fargo & Company raised their target price on shares of Colgate-Palmolive from $83.00 to $88.00 and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 2nd. Royal Bank of Canada reiterated a “sector perform” rating and set a $101.00 price target on shares of Colgate-Palmolive in a research note on Wednesday, January 29th. Finally, UBS Group raised their price objective on shares of Colgate-Palmolive from $105.00 to $109.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, April 17th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have assigned a hold rating and eleven have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Colgate-Palmolive has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $102.39.

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.