Bessemer Group Inc. Has $4.03 Million Stake in Colgate-Palmolive (NYSE:CL)

Bessemer Group Inc. lessened its holdings in shares of Colgate-Palmolive (NYSE:CL - Free Report) by 8.2% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 44,354 shares of the company's stock after selling 3,977 shares during the period. Bessemer Group Inc.'s holdings in Colgate-Palmolive were worth $4,033,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its stake in shares of Colgate-Palmolive by 0.7% during the 4th 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 during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Colgate-Palmolive by 1.6% in the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 20,518,014 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,868,723,000 after purchasing an additional 324,683 shares in the last quarter. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in shares of Colgate-Palmolive in the fourth quarter valued at about $912,375,000. Amundi grew its position 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 last quarter. Finally, Barclays PLC raised its position in shares of Colgate-Palmolive by 38.7% during the 3rd 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. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 80.41% of the company's stock.

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Colgate-Palmolive Price Performance

NYSE CL traded down $0.78 on Wednesday, reaching $93.48. The company's stock had a trading volume of 4,120,111 shares, compared to its average volume of 4,578,968. The firm's 50 day moving average is $90.82 and its two-hundred day moving average is $92.53. The stock has a market cap of $75.82 billion, a PE ratio of 26.56, a PEG ratio of 4.20 and a beta of 0.40. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 13.40, a quick ratio of 0.58 and a current ratio of 0.92. Colgate-Palmolive has a twelve month low of $85.32 and a twelve month high of $109.30.

Colgate-Palmolive (NYSE:CL - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Friday, January 31st. The company reported $0.91 EPS 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 last year, the firm earned $0.87 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Colgate-Palmolive will post 3.75 EPS for the current year.

Colgate-Palmolive Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 15th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, April 17th will be given a dividend of $0.52 per share. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, April 17th. This is a positive change from Colgate-Palmolive's previous quarterly dividend of $0.50. This represents a $2.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.23%. Colgate-Palmolive's payout ratio is 59.09%.

Colgate-Palmolive declared that its Board of Directors has authorized a share buyback program on Thursday, March 20th that authorizes the company to repurchase $5.00 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the company to buy up to 6.8% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase programs are generally a sign that the company's management believes its stock is undervalued.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities research analysts have recently commented on CL shares. Barclays lowered their price target on shares of Colgate-Palmolive from $89.00 to $86.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a report on Friday, April 11th. StockNews.com raised Colgate-Palmolive from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, April 4th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their price objective on Colgate-Palmolive from $99.00 to $95.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research report on Friday, April 11th. UBS Group reduced their target price on Colgate-Palmolive from $104.00 to $100.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. Finally, Raymond James restated an "outperform" rating and issued a $105.00 price target (down previously from $110.00) on shares of Colgate-Palmolive in a report on Monday, February 3rd. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have assigned a hold rating and twelve have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Colgate-Palmolive currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $101.67.

About Colgate-Palmolive

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.