Colgate-Palmolive (NYSE:CL) Stock Rating Upgraded by StockNews.com

StockNews.com upgraded shares of Colgate-Palmolive (NYSE:CL) from a hold rating to a buy rating in a research note released on Monday morning.

A number of other research firms also recently weighed in on CL. Sanford C. Bernstein lifted their price objective on Colgate-Palmolive from $100.00 to $103.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a report on Tuesday, July 30th. Barclays boosted their price target on Colgate-Palmolive from $91.00 to $96.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Monday, July 29th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft lowered Colgate-Palmolive from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and increased their price objective for the stock from $107.00 to $109.00 in a research note on Monday, September 9th. TD Cowen reduced their target price on shares of Colgate-Palmolive from $115.00 to $110.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, October 28th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their target price on shares of Colgate-Palmolive from $113.00 to $114.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, October 11th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have assigned a hold rating and thirteen have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $105.11.

Colgate-Palmolive Price Performance

Shares of Colgate-Palmolive stock opened at $96.75 on Monday. The firm has a market cap of $79.05 billion, a P/E ratio of 27.72, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.40 and a beta of 0.42. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $97.61 and its 200-day simple moving average is $98.58. Colgate-Palmolive has a twelve month low of $75.50 and a twelve month high of $109.30. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 9.46, a quick ratio of 0.68 and a current ratio of 1.04.

Colgate-Palmolive Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, November 15th. Stockholders of record on Friday, October 18th were paid a dividend of $0.50 per share. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.07%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, October 18th. Colgate-Palmolive’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 57.31%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Colgate-Palmolive news, CFO Stanley J. Sutula III sold 45,410 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, November 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $94.11, for a total transaction of $4,273,535.10. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer now owns 36,726 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,456,283.86. The trade was a 55.29 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 0.37% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Colgate-Palmolive

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Swedbank AB acquired a new position in shares of Colgate-Palmolive in the 1st quarter valued at $286,370,000. Acadian Asset Management LLC lifted its holdings in Colgate-Palmolive by 108.4% during the second quarter. Acadian Asset Management LLC now owns 5,682,280 shares of the company’s stock worth $551,367,000 after acquiring an additional 2,955,442 shares in the last quarter. FMR LLC grew its stake in Colgate-Palmolive by 65.6% in the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 6,749,275 shares of the company’s stock valued at $700,642,000 after acquiring an additional 2,674,807 shares during the period. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA increased its holdings in shares of Colgate-Palmolive by 40.7% in the second quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 8,969,498 shares of the company’s stock worth $870,400,000 after acquiring an additional 2,593,313 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Barclays PLC raised its position in shares of Colgate-Palmolive by 38.7% during the third quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 7,644,189 shares of the company’s stock worth $793,542,000 after purchasing an additional 2,132,747 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 80.41% of the company’s stock.

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.