Colgate-Palmolive (NYSE:CL) Price Target Raised to $95.00

Colgate-Palmolive (NYSE:CL) had its price objective raised by Wells Fargo & Company from $90.00 to $95.00 in a research note issued to investors on Monday morning,Benzinga reports. They currently have an equal weight rating on the stock.

A number of other equities analysts also recently issued reports on the company. Jefferies Financial Group reissued a “hold” rating and set a $89.00 target price (up from $88.00) on shares of Colgate-Palmolive in a research note on Monday, August 3rd. BNP Paribas Exane decreased their price target on Colgate-Palmolive from $101.00 to $97.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, September 28th. Sanford C. Bernstein restated a “market perform” rating on shares of Colgate-Palmolive in a report on Thursday, August 13th. Citigroup upped their price target on Colgate-Palmolive from $105.00 to $110.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, July 14th. Finally, UBS Group raised their price target on Colgate-Palmolive from $106.00 to $112.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday. Thirteen analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and seven have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $101.22.

Colgate-Palmolive Stock Up 3.2%

CL stock opened at $98.65 on Monday. Colgate-Palmolive has a 12 month low of $75.96 and a 12 month high of $99.69. The company has a market cap of $78.42 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 24.64, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.34 and a beta of 0.31. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $89.88 and a 200 day moving average price of $89.85. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 11.23, a current ratio of 0.96 and a quick ratio of 0.30.

Colgate-Palmolive (NYSE:CL) last released its quarterly earnings results on Friday, October 30th. The company reported $0.97 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.93 by $0.04. Colgate-Palmolive had a return on equity of 607.88% and a net margin of 9.65%. The firm had revenue of $5.37 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.34 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $0.91 earnings per share. The business’s revenue was up 4.6% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts expect that Colgate-Palmolive will post 3.91 earnings per share for the current year.

Colgate-Palmolive Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 13th. Investors of record on Tuesday, October 20th will be paid a $0.53 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, October 20th. This represents a $2.12 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.1%. Colgate-Palmolive’s dividend payout ratio is presently 83.14%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Colgate-Palmolive news, COO Panagiotis Tsourapas sold 10,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, August 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $92.05, for a total transaction of $920,500.00. Following the sale, the chief operating officer owned 64,901 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,974,137.05. This represents a 13.35% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Company insiders own 0.43% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Colgate-Palmolive

A number of institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. State Street Corp lifted its stake in shares of Colgate-Palmolive by 97.4% during the second quarter. State Street Corp now owns 94,195,992 shares of the company’s stock worth $8,635,889,000 after purchasing an additional 46,476,510 shares in the last quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp boosted its position in shares of Colgate-Palmolive by 8.1% in the second quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 13,532,417 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,240,652,000 after buying an additional 1,010,872 shares during the period. First Eagle Investment Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Colgate-Palmolive by 1.1% in the second quarter. First Eagle Investment Management LLC now owns 8,205,699 shares of the company’s stock valued at $752,298,000 after buying an additional 88,917 shares in the last quarter. Bank of America Corp DE grew its stake in shares of Colgate-Palmolive by 17.4% in the first quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 6,637,597 shares of the company’s stock valued at $565,722,000 after buying an additional 986,063 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Amundi grew its stake in shares of Colgate-Palmolive by 19.9% in the second quarter. Amundi now owns 6,218,257 shares of the company’s stock valued at $570,090,000 after buying an additional 1,033,918 shares in the last quarter. 80.41% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Colgate-Palmolive News Summary

Here are the key news stories impacting Colgate-Palmolive this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Investors have favored Colgate-Palmolive and other Dividend Kings amid political uncertainty, seeking dependable earnings and dividends. The company’s recent quarterly results also showed resilience: earnings and revenue exceeded consensus estimates, and revenue grew year over year. Article: Dividend Kings hitting 52-week highs
• Positive Sentiment: Several firms delivered supportive signals, including price-target increases from Wells Fargo and RBC, a bullish appreciation outlook from Morgan Stanley, and an Outperform reaffirmation from BNP Paribas Exane. Article: Wells Fargo raises price target Article: Morgan Stanley outlook Article: BNP Paribas Exane reaffirms Outperform Article: RBC raises price target
• Positive Sentiment: Commentary also highlights Colgate-Palmolive’s pricing power to help protect earnings and dividends from inflation, as well as improving execution and a potentially attractive valuation. Article: Dividend stocks with pricing power Article: Improving execution and valuation
• Neutral Sentiment: Barclays raised its target but maintained an Equal Weight/Hold stance, indicating limited conviction that the shares will outperform from current levels. Article: Barclays remains a Hold
• Negative Sentiment: JPMorgan lowered its expectations for CL’s share price, a counterpoint to the recent target increases. Article: JPMorgan lowers price expectations

Colgate-Palmolive Company Profile

Colgate-Palmolive Company (NYSE: CL) is a global consumer products company focused on oral care, personal care, home care and pet nutrition. Its portfolio includes toothpaste, toothbrushes, mouthwash, liquid hand soap, body wash, deodorants, household cleaning products and pet food and treats.

The company markets well-known brands such as Colgate, Palmolive, elmex, meridol, Softsoap, Irish Spring, Ajax, Protex and Hill’s Science Diet. Colgate-Palmolive also provides veterinary and nutritional products through Hill’s Pet Nutrition, which serves pet owners and animal health professionals.

Founded in 1806 by William Colgate, the company developed from a soap and candle business into a diversified consumer goods manufacturer.