CENTRAL TRUST Co Reduces Stock Position in Colgate-Palmolive (NYSE:CL)

CENTRAL TRUST Co lessened its holdings in shares of Colgate-Palmolive (NYSE:CL) by 6.0% during the first quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm owned 33,147 shares of the company’s stock after selling 2,134 shares during the quarter. CENTRAL TRUST Co’s holdings in Colgate-Palmolive were worth $2,985,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. Coldstream Capital Management Inc. raised its position in shares of Colgate-Palmolive by 13.4% in the 3rd quarter. Coldstream Capital Management Inc. now owns 9,876 shares of the company’s stock worth $702,000 after purchasing an additional 1,169 shares during the last quarter. CNB Bank purchased a new stake in shares of Colgate-Palmolive during the 3rd quarter valued at about $99,000. Dai ichi Life Insurance Company Ltd boosted its stake in shares of Colgate-Palmolive by 25.5% during the 3rd quarter. Dai ichi Life Insurance Company Ltd now owns 104,821 shares of the company’s stock worth $7,454,000 after acquiring an additional 21,286 shares during the last quarter. Main Street Financial Solutions LLC increased its stake in shares of Colgate-Palmolive by 5.4% in the 3rd quarter. Main Street Financial Solutions LLC now owns 6,196 shares of the company’s stock worth $441,000 after purchasing an additional 318 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Private Advisor Group LLC lifted its position in Colgate-Palmolive by 7.6% during the third quarter. Private Advisor Group LLC now owns 66,474 shares of the company’s stock valued at $4,727,000 after purchasing an additional 4,720 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 80.41% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts recently issued reports on CL shares. Citigroup increased their target price on shares of Colgate-Palmolive from $95.00 to $100.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, April 16th. Bank of America increased their price target on Colgate-Palmolive from $90.00 to $100.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, April 29th. Stifel Nicolaus boosted their price objective on Colgate-Palmolive from $94.00 to $95.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, April 29th. TheStreet raised Colgate-Palmolive from a “c+” rating to a “b+” rating in a research note on Friday, January 26th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company increased their price objective on shares of Colgate-Palmolive from $90.00 to $92.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Monday, April 29th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and fourteen have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $92.35.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, insider Sally Massey sold 12,226 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, May 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $94.06, for a total transaction of $1,149,977.56. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 13,924 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,309,691.44. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. In other Colgate-Palmolive news, insider John W. Kooyman sold 3,497 shares of Colgate-Palmolive stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, May 7th. The stock was sold at an average price of $93.47, for a total value of $326,864.59. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 3,181 shares in the company, valued at $297,328.07. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, insider Sally Massey sold 12,226 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, May 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $94.06, for a total transaction of $1,149,977.56. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 13,924 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,309,691.44. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.37% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Colgate-Palmolive Trading Down 0.4 %

Shares of NYSE CL traded down $0.42 during midday trading on Wednesday, hitting $94.75. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 3,849,901 shares, compared to its average volume of 4,599,631. The business’s 50 day moving average is $90.17 and its two-hundred day moving average is $84.17. Colgate-Palmolive has a 12-month low of $67.62 and a 12-month high of $95.59. The company has a current ratio of 1.06, a quick ratio of 0.70 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 13.21. The firm has a market cap of $77.74 billion, a P/E ratio of 29.98, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.48 and a beta of 0.40.

Colgate-Palmolive (NYSE:CL) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Friday, April 26th. The company reported $0.86 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.82 by $0.04. The firm had revenue of $5.07 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.96 billion. Colgate-Palmolive had a net margin of 13.22% and a return on equity of 485.40%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 6.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $0.73 earnings per share. As a group, equities research analysts expect that Colgate-Palmolive will post 3.53 EPS for the current year.

Colgate-Palmolive Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, May 15th. Investors of record on Monday, April 22nd were paid a $0.50 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, April 19th. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.11%. This is a boost from Colgate-Palmolive’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.48. Colgate-Palmolive’s dividend payout ratio is 63.29%.

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.