Prospect Financial Group LLC Acquires Shares of 2,553 Colgate-Palmolive (NYSE:CL)

Prospect Financial Group LLC bought a new position in shares of Colgate-Palmolive (NYSE:CL) during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund bought 2,553 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $232,000.

Other large investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its position in Colgate-Palmolive by 0.7% during the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 81,303,059 shares of the company’s stock worth $7,391,261,000 after buying an additional 588,230 shares in the last quarter. State Street Corp raised its holdings in shares of Colgate-Palmolive by 3.8% during the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 48,436,276 shares of the company’s stock worth $5,028,170,000 after acquiring an additional 1,784,411 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its position in shares of Colgate-Palmolive by 2.8% during the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 20,193,331 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,095,325,000 after acquiring an additional 552,949 shares during the last quarter. Amundi grew its holdings in shares of Colgate-Palmolive by 12.8% in the fourth quarter. Amundi now owns 9,200,144 shares of the company’s stock valued at $806,015,000 after purchasing an additional 1,040,604 shares during the period. Finally, Barclays PLC increased its position in 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 last quarter. 80.41% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Colgate-Palmolive Stock Up 0.7 %

Shares of NYSE:CL opened at $90.91 on Tuesday. 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 has a fifty-two week low of $85.32 and a fifty-two week high of $109.30. The stock has a market cap of $73.78 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 25.83, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.20 and a beta of 0.40. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $89.40 and its 200 day moving average price is $93.95.

Colgate-Palmolive (NYSE:CL) last released its quarterly earnings data on Friday, January 31st. The company reported $0.91 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate 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 quarter in the previous year, the company posted $0.87 earnings per share. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Colgate-Palmolive will post 3.75 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Colgate-Palmolive declared that its Board of Directors has approved a stock buyback plan on Thursday, March 20th that authorizes the company to repurchase $5.00 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the company to repurchase up to 6.8% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are usually a sign that the company’s leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

Colgate-Palmolive Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 15th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, April 17th will be issued a $0.52 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, April 17th. This represents a $2.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.29%. This is an increase from Colgate-Palmolive’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.50. Colgate-Palmolive’s dividend payout ratio is presently 56.82%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

CL has been the subject of several analyst reports. Royal Bank of Canada reissued a “sector perform” rating and issued a $101.00 price target on shares of Colgate-Palmolive in a research note on Wednesday, January 29th. TD Cowen cut their target price on Colgate-Palmolive from $110.00 to $100.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, January 8th. Piper Sandler decreased their price target on Colgate-Palmolive from $121.00 to $112.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, January 6th. UBS Group cut their price objective on Colgate-Palmolive from $104.00 to $100.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. Finally, Morgan Stanley decreased their target price on shares of Colgate-Palmolive from $111.00 to $104.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have assigned a hold rating and eleven have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Colgate-Palmolive currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $101.72.

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.