J.W. Cole Advisors Inc. Sells 4,177 Shares of Colgate-Palmolive (NYSE:CL)

J.W. Cole Advisors Inc. reduced its holdings in shares of Colgate-Palmolive (NYSE:CL) by 30.2% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 9,676 shares of the company’s stock after selling 4,177 shares during the quarter. J.W. Cole Advisors Inc.’s holdings in Colgate-Palmolive were worth $771,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. OFI Invest Asset Management acquired a new stake in shares of Colgate-Palmolive in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Avion Wealth boosted its holdings in shares of Colgate-Palmolive by 78.1% in the 4th quarter. Avion Wealth now owns 399 shares of the company’s stock valued at $32,000 after buying an additional 175 shares during the last quarter. McGlone Suttner Wealth Management Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Colgate-Palmolive in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $34,000. Kayne Anderson Rudnick Investment Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Colgate-Palmolive by 142.0% in the 3rd quarter. Kayne Anderson Rudnick Investment Management LLC now owns 496 shares of the company’s stock valued at $35,000 after buying an additional 291 shares during the last quarter. Finally, West Branch Capital LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Colgate-Palmolive by 24.0% in the 4th quarter. West Branch Capital LLC now owns 682 shares of the company’s stock valued at $54,000 after buying an additional 132 shares during the last quarter. 80.41% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling at Colgate-Palmolive

In other Colgate-Palmolive news, EVP Gregory Malcolm sold 8,930 shares of Colgate-Palmolive stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $85.35, for a total value of $762,175.50. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 8,043 shares in the company, valued at $686,470.05. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. In other Colgate-Palmolive news, insider Jennifer Daniels sold 3,538 shares of Colgate-Palmolive stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, February 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $84.67, for a total value of $299,562.46. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 59,698 shares in the company, valued at $5,054,629.66. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Gregory Malcolm sold 8,930 shares of Colgate-Palmolive stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $85.35, for a total value of $762,175.50. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 8,043 shares in the company, valued at $686,470.05. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 232,371 shares of company stock worth $19,505,099 over the last 90 days. Insiders own 0.37% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts have issued reports on the company. Raymond James raised Colgate-Palmolive from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $91.00 price target for the company in a report on Monday, January 29th. UBS Group raised their price target on Colgate-Palmolive from $93.00 to $95.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, January 29th. StockNews.com downgraded Colgate-Palmolive from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 20th. Stifel Nicolaus raised their price target on Colgate-Palmolive from $89.00 to $94.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, April 10th. Finally, Citigroup raised their price target on Colgate-Palmolive from $95.00 to $100.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, April 16th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and thirteen have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $89.50.

Colgate-Palmolive Stock Up 1.4 %

Shares of NYSE CL opened at $88.33 on Tuesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 8.59, a quick ratio of 0.71 and a current ratio of 1.11. Colgate-Palmolive has a 52 week low of $67.62 and a 52 week high of $90.37. The stock has a market capitalization of $72.61 billion, a P/E ratio of 31.77, a PEG ratio of 3.27 and a beta of 0.42. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $87.19 and its 200 day moving average is $81.06.

Colgate-Palmolive (NYSE:CL) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Friday, January 26th. The company reported $0.87 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.85 by $0.02. Colgate-Palmolive had a return on equity of 509.75% and a net margin of 11.82%. The company had revenue of $4.95 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.89 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $0.77 earnings per share. Colgate-Palmolive’s revenue was up 6.9% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts forecast that Colgate-Palmolive will post 3.5 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Colgate-Palmolive Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, May 15th. Shareholders of record on Monday, April 22nd will be given a $0.50 dividend. This represents a $2.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.26%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, April 19th. This is a boost from Colgate-Palmolive’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.48. Colgate-Palmolive’s payout ratio is currently 71.94%.

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.