Sumitomo Life Insurance Co. Sells 606 Shares of Colgate-Palmolive (NYSE:CL)

Sumitomo Life Insurance Co. decreased its position in shares of Colgate-Palmolive (NYSE:CL) by 4.9% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 11,717 shares of the company’s stock after selling 606 shares during the quarter. Sumitomo Life Insurance Co.’s holdings in Colgate-Palmolive were worth $934,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in CL. OFI Invest Asset Management purchased a new stake in Colgate-Palmolive during the 3rd quarter worth about $25,000. Avion Wealth lifted its holdings in Colgate-Palmolive by 78.1% during the 4th quarter. Avion Wealth now owns 399 shares of the company’s stock worth $32,000 after purchasing an additional 175 shares in the last quarter. McGlone Suttner Wealth Management Inc. purchased a new stake in Colgate-Palmolive during the 4th quarter worth about $34,000. Quarry LP lifted its holdings in Colgate-Palmolive by 48.2% during the 2nd quarter. Quarry LP now owns 446 shares of the company’s stock worth $34,000 after purchasing an additional 145 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Kayne Anderson Rudnick Investment Management LLC lifted its holdings in Colgate-Palmolive by 142.0% during the 3rd quarter. Kayne Anderson Rudnick Investment Management LLC now owns 496 shares of the company’s stock worth $35,000 after purchasing an additional 291 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 80.41% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts recently weighed in on the company. UBS Group raised their price objective on Colgate-Palmolive from $93.00 to $95.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, January 29th. Stifel Nicolaus lifted their price objective on Colgate-Palmolive from $89.00 to $94.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 10th. The Goldman Sachs Group started coverage on Colgate-Palmolive in a research report on Friday, March 1st. They issued a “buy” rating and a $93.00 price objective on the stock. Evercore ISI raised their target price on Colgate-Palmolive from $90.00 to $96.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, April 8th. Finally, Raymond James upgraded Colgate-Palmolive from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $91.00 target price for the company in a research note on Monday, January 29th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and thirteen have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $88.56.

Colgate-Palmolive Stock Performance

Shares of CL opened at $86.17 on Tuesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 8.59, a current ratio of 1.11 and a quick ratio of 0.71. Colgate-Palmolive has a one year low of $67.62 and a one year high of $90.37. The firm has a market capitalization of $70.83 billion, a P/E ratio of 31.00, a PEG ratio of 3.26 and a beta of 0.42. The business has a fifty day moving average of $86.87 and a 200 day moving average of $80.48.

Colgate-Palmolive (NYSE:CL) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Friday, January 26th. The company reported $0.87 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate 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 during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.89 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $0.77 earnings per share. Colgate-Palmolive’s revenue was up 6.9% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Colgate-Palmolive will post 3.49 EPS for the current year.

Colgate-Palmolive Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, May 15th. Investors of record on Monday, April 22nd will be issued a $0.50 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, April 19th. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.32%. This is a positive change from Colgate-Palmolive’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.48. Colgate-Palmolive’s payout ratio is presently 69.06%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Colgate-Palmolive

In other Colgate-Palmolive 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 completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 274,179 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $22,797,983.85. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. In other Colgate-Palmolive news, Director C Martin Harris sold 2,760 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, January 31st. The stock was sold at an average price of $84.50, for a total transaction of $233,220.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 19,272 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,628,484. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CEO Noel R. Wallace sold 50,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $83.15, for a total value of $4,157,500.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 274,179 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $22,797,983.85. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 232,371 shares of company stock valued at $19,505,099. Company insiders own 0.37% of the company’s stock.

Colgate-Palmolive 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.