Stifel Nicolaus Increases Colgate-Palmolive (NYSE:CL) Price Target to $95.00

Colgate-Palmolive (NYSE:CL) had its target price boosted by Stifel Nicolaus from $94.00 to $95.00 in a research report sent to investors on Monday morning, Benzinga reports. The firm currently has a buy rating on the stock.

A number of other equities research analysts also recently issued reports on CL. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price objective on Colgate-Palmolive from $80.00 to $88.00 and gave the stock an equal weight rating in a research report on Monday, January 29th. Morgan Stanley lifted their price target on Colgate-Palmolive from $85.00 to $93.00 and gave the company an overweight rating in a research report on Monday, January 29th. Royal Bank of Canada raised their target price on shares of Colgate-Palmolive from $88.00 to $95.00 and gave the company a sector perform rating in a research note on Monday. UBS Group boosted their price target on shares of Colgate-Palmolive from $93.00 to $95.00 and gave the stock a buy rating in a research note on Monday, January 29th. Finally, TheStreet upgraded shares of Colgate-Palmolive from a c+ rating to a b+ rating in a research report on Friday, January 26th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and thirteen have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of Moderate Buy and an average price target of $91.44.

Colgate-Palmolive Stock Performance

Shares of CL opened at $91.90 on Monday. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $88.08 and its 200 day simple moving average is $81.99. Colgate-Palmolive has a 52-week low of $67.62 and a 52-week high of $92.54. The stock has a market capitalization of $75.40 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 29.08, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.37 and a beta of 0.42. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 13.21, a quick ratio of 0.28 and a current ratio of 1.06.

Colgate-Palmolive (NYSE:CL) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Friday, April 26th. The company reported $0.86 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.82 by $0.04. Colgate-Palmolive had a net margin of 13.22% and a return on equity of 485.40%. The company had revenue of $5.07 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.96 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $0.73 earnings per share. Colgate-Palmolive’s revenue for the quarter was up 6.2% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts forecast that Colgate-Palmolive will post 3.52 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Colgate-Palmolive Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, May 15th. Investors of record on Monday, April 22nd will be issued a dividend of $0.50 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, April 19th. This is a boost from Colgate-Palmolive’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.48. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.18%. Colgate-Palmolive’s dividend payout ratio is currently 63.29%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, insider Jennifer Daniels sold 3,538 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $84.67, for a total transaction of $299,562.46. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 59,698 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $5,054,629.66. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. In related news, CEO Noel R. Wallace sold 50,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $83.15, for a total transaction of $4,157,500.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 274,179 shares in the company, valued at approximately $22,797,983.85. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, insider Jennifer Daniels sold 3,538 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, February 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $84.67, for a total value of $299,562.46. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 59,698 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $5,054,629.66. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 159,048 shares of company stock worth $13,336,846 in the last ninety days. 0.37% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Colgate-Palmolive

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Norges Bank purchased a new position in Colgate-Palmolive during the 4th quarter valued at $731,843,000. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD increased its position in shares of Colgate-Palmolive by 16.8% during the fourth quarter. Price T Rowe Associates Inc. MD now owns 32,133,218 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,561,340,000 after buying an additional 4,625,472 shares during the period. Magellan Asset Management Ltd raised its stake in Colgate-Palmolive by 4,162.6% in the fourth quarter. Magellan Asset Management Ltd now owns 2,016,290 shares of the company’s stock worth $160,718,000 after buying an additional 1,968,988 shares in the last quarter. Confluence Investment Management LLC purchased a new stake in Colgate-Palmolive in the first quarter worth about $130,622,000. Finally, FMR LLC boosted its position in Colgate-Palmolive by 27.3% during the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 5,597,742 shares of the company’s stock valued at $398,055,000 after acquiring an additional 1,199,660 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 80.41% of the company’s stock.

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.