Bridgewater Associates LP Sells 672,617 Shares of Colgate-Palmolive (NYSE:CL)

Bridgewater Associates LP lowered its stake in Colgate-Palmolive (NYSE:CL - Free Report) by 52.6% during the third quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 606,621 shares of the company's stock after selling 672,617 shares during the quarter. Bridgewater Associates LP owned approximately 0.07% of Colgate-Palmolive worth $62,973,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of CL. Swedbank AB acquired a new stake in shares of Colgate-Palmolive in the 1st quarter valued at $286,370,000. Acadian Asset Management LLC lifted its position in shares of Colgate-Palmolive by 108.4% during the 2nd quarter. Acadian Asset Management LLC now owns 5,682,280 shares of the company's stock worth $551,367,000 after buying an additional 2,955,442 shares during the period. FMR LLC lifted its holdings in Colgate-Palmolive by 65.6% during the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 6,749,275 shares of the company's stock valued at $700,642,000 after purchasing an additional 2,674,807 shares during the last quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA grew its position in Colgate-Palmolive by 40.7% during the 2nd quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 8,969,498 shares of the company's stock worth $870,400,000 after acquiring an additional 2,593,313 shares during the last quarter. Finally, AQR Capital Management LLC increased its position in Colgate-Palmolive by 58.6% in the 2nd quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 2,416,943 shares of the company's stock valued at $234,540,000 after acquiring an additional 892,706 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 80.41% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages have issued reports on CL. TD Cowen reduced their price objective on shares of Colgate-Palmolive from $115.00 to $110.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, October 28th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their target price on shares of Colgate-Palmolive from $113.00 to $114.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Friday, October 11th. Redburn Atlantic upgraded Colgate-Palmolive to a "hold" rating in a research note on Thursday, August 1st. UBS Group increased their price objective on shares of Colgate-Palmolive from $119.00 to $122.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, September 4th. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus lowered Colgate-Palmolive from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating and reduced their price objective for the company from $105.00 to $101.00 in a research note on Monday, October 28th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have given a hold rating and thirteen have assigned a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $105.11.

Colgate-Palmolive Price Performance

Shares of CL stock traded up $0.19 during trading hours on Wednesday, hitting $96.77. 1,946,079 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 4,380,024. The business's 50 day simple moving average is $97.74 and its 200-day simple moving average is $98.59. Colgate-Palmolive has a 12-month low of $75.50 and a 12-month high of $109.30. The company has a market capitalization of $79.06 billion, a PE ratio of 27.68, a PEG ratio of 3.40 and a beta of 0.42. The company has a current ratio of 1.04, a quick ratio of 0.68 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 9.46.

Colgate-Palmolive Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, November 15th. Investors of record on Friday, October 18th were paid a $0.50 dividend. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.07%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, October 18th. Colgate-Palmolive's payout ratio is 57.31%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Colgate-Palmolive

In related news, CFO Stanley J. Sutula III sold 45,410 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, November 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $94.11, for a total transaction of $4,273,535.10. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 36,726 shares of the company's stock, valued at $3,456,283.86. This trade represents a 55.29 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 0.37% of the company's stock.

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.