Abacus FCF Advisors LLC Grows Stock Holdings in Colgate-Palmolive (NYSE:CL)

Abacus FCF Advisors LLC raised its position in Colgate-Palmolive (NYSE:CL) by 68.3% during the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The firm owned 97,421 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 39,530 shares during the period. Colgate-Palmolive accounts for about 1.2% of Abacus FCF Advisors LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its 16th largest position. Abacus FCF Advisors LLC’s holdings in Colgate-Palmolive were worth $8,857,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

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

Colgate-Palmolive Stock Down 2.7 %

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

Colgate-Palmolive (NYSE:CL) last posted 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 return on equity of 477.77% and a net margin of 14.38%. During the same period last year, the company earned $0.87 earnings per share. Research analysts anticipate that Colgate-Palmolive will post 3.75 EPS for the current fiscal year.

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

Colgate-Palmolive Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 15th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, April 17th will be issued a $0.52 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, April 17th. This represents a $2.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.33%. This is a positive change from Colgate-Palmolive’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.50. Colgate-Palmolive’s payout ratio is currently 59.09%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts have issued reports on CL shares. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price objective on shares of Colgate-Palmolive from $83.00 to $88.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 2nd. StockNews.com raised Colgate-Palmolive from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Friday. Stifel Nicolaus dropped their price objective on Colgate-Palmolive from $95.00 to $93.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, February 3rd. Morgan Stanley reduced their target price on Colgate-Palmolive from $111.00 to $104.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Monday, February 3rd. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price target on shares of Colgate-Palmolive from $97.00 to $99.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, March 14th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have given a hold rating and twelve have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target 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.