AustralianSuper Pty Ltd Raises Position in Colgate-Palmolive (NYSE:CL)

AustralianSuper Pty Ltd lifted its position in Colgate-Palmolive (NYSE:CL - Free Report) by 941.9% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 1,138,655 shares of the company's stock after buying an additional 1,029,364 shares during the period. AustralianSuper Pty Ltd owned about 0.14% of Colgate-Palmolive worth $103,515,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in CL. Union Bancaire Privee UBP SA acquired a new position in shares of Colgate-Palmolive during the 4th quarter worth about $32,000. Hager Investment Management Services LLC acquired a new position in Colgate-Palmolive during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $36,000. Reston Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Colgate-Palmolive during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $42,000. Synergy Asset Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Colgate-Palmolive during the 4th quarter worth approximately $49,000. Finally, Capital Performance Advisors LLP bought a new stake in shares of Colgate-Palmolive during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $53,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 80.41% of the company's stock.

Colgate-Palmolive Price Performance

Shares of CL stock traded up $0.93 during trading on Wednesday, hitting $87.32. The company had a trading volume of 4,306,951 shares, compared to its average volume of 4,940,192. The stock's 50-day moving average is $89.24 and its two-hundred day moving average is $96.11. The stock has a market capitalization of $70.86 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 24.81, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.10 and a beta of 0.44. 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 52 week low of $83.70 and a 52 week high of $109.30.

Colgate-Palmolive (NYSE:CL - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Friday, January 31st. The company reported $0.91 earnings per share for the quarter, beating 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 EPS. As a group, analysts predict that Colgate-Palmolive will post 3.76 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Colgate-Palmolive Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 14th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, January 21st were given a dividend of $0.50 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, January 21st. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.29%. Colgate-Palmolive's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 56.82%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. Barclays lowered their price objective on shares of Colgate-Palmolive from $96.00 to $83.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, January 17th. Piper Sandler lowered their price objective on shares of Colgate-Palmolive from $121.00 to $112.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research report on Monday, January 6th. Royal Bank of Canada restated a "sector perform" rating and set a $101.00 price objective on shares of Colgate-Palmolive in a research report on Wednesday, January 29th. UBS Group cut their price objective on Colgate-Palmolive from $104.00 to $100.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. Finally, StockNews.com downgraded shares of Colgate-Palmolive from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Thursday, January 9th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have given a hold rating and twelve have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $101.16.

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.