Colgate-Palmolive (NYSE:CL) Shares Purchased by Transamerica Financial Advisors Inc.

Transamerica Financial Advisors Inc. raised its holdings in Colgate-Palmolive (NYSE:CL) by 30.1% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 8,240 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 1,905 shares during the period. Transamerica Financial Advisors Inc.’s holdings in Colgate-Palmolive were worth $750,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors have also modified their holdings of CL. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in shares of Colgate-Palmolive during the 4th quarter worth about $912,375,000. Diamond Hill Capital Management Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Colgate-Palmolive during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $348,718,000. AMF Tjanstepension AB boosted its position in Colgate-Palmolive by 1,088.8% during the fourth quarter. AMF Tjanstepension AB now owns 2,569,394 shares of the company’s stock worth $233,584,000 after acquiring an additional 2,353,268 shares during the last quarter. Barclays PLC grew its stake in Colgate-Palmolive by 38.7% in the 3rd quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 7,644,189 shares of the company’s stock worth $793,542,000 after acquiring an additional 2,132,747 shares during the period. Finally, State Street Corp raised its holdings in Colgate-Palmolive by 3.8% in the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 48,436,276 shares of the company’s stock valued at $5,028,170,000 after acquiring an additional 1,784,411 shares during the last quarter. 80.41% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts have recently issued reports on CL shares. UBS Group decreased their price objective on Colgate-Palmolive from $104.00 to $100.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, February 3rd. Raymond James restated an “outperform” rating and issued a $105.00 price target (down previously from $110.00) on shares of Colgate-Palmolive in a report on Monday, February 3rd. Wells Fargo & Company cut their price objective on shares of Colgate-Palmolive from $92.00 to $83.00 and set an “underweight” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, January 7th. StockNews.com downgraded shares of Colgate-Palmolive from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, March 25th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus cut their price target 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. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have issued a hold rating and eleven have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $102.06.

Colgate-Palmolive Trading Down 0.5 %

Shares of NYSE CL opened at $92.73 on Friday. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $89.69 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $93.61. Colgate-Palmolive has a 52-week low of $85.32 and a 52-week high of $109.30. The stock has a market capitalization of $75.25 billion, a P/E ratio of 26.34, a PEG ratio of 4.20 and a beta of 0.40. 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 issued its earnings results on Friday, January 31st. The company reported $0.91 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.90 by $0.01. Colgate-Palmolive had a net margin of 14.38% and a return on equity of 477.77%. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $0.87 EPS. On average, analysts anticipate that Colgate-Palmolive will post 3.75 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Colgate-Palmolive declared that its Board of Directors has initiated a share buyback program on Thursday, March 20th that allows the company to buyback $5.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization allows the company to buy up to 6.8% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are often a sign that the company’s board believes its stock is undervalued.

Colgate-Palmolive Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 15th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, April 17th will be paid a dividend of $0.52 per share. This represents a $2.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.24%. This is a positive change from Colgate-Palmolive’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.50. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, April 17th. Colgate-Palmolive’s payout ratio is presently 59.09%.

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.