Colgate-Palmolive (NYSE:CL) Shares Sold by Canada Pension Plan Investment Board

Canada Pension Plan Investment Board lowered its stake in shares of Colgate-Palmolive (NYSE:CL - Free Report) by 68.1% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 764,204 shares of the company's stock after selling 1,632,134 shares during the period. Canada Pension Plan Investment Board owned approximately 0.09% of Colgate-Palmolive worth $69,474,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in CL. Kohmann Bosshard Financial Services LLC purchased a new position in Colgate-Palmolive in the fourth quarter valued at about $26,000. Centricity Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Colgate-Palmolive in the fourth quarter valued at about $27,000. Union Bancaire Privee UBP SA purchased a new stake in shares of Colgate-Palmolive during the 4th quarter valued at about $32,000. Briaud Financial Planning Inc acquired a new position in Colgate-Palmolive during the 4th quarter worth approximately $32,000. Finally, Wintrust Investments LLC purchased a new position in Colgate-Palmolive in the 4th quarter worth approximately $33,000. 80.41% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Colgate-Palmolive Stock Performance

NYSE CL traded down $1.92 during trading hours on Wednesday, hitting $93.89. The company had a trading volume of 8,478,415 shares, compared to its average volume of 5,344,228. Colgate-Palmolive has a fifty-two week low of $85.32 and a fifty-two week high of $109.30. The firm has a market cap of $76.15 billion, a P/E ratio of 26.67, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.20 and a beta of 0.40. The company has a quick ratio of 0.58, a current ratio of 0.92 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 13.40. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $91.63 and a 200-day simple moving average of $92.30.

Colgate-Palmolive (NYSE:CL - Get Free Report) last issued 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 period in the prior year, the firm posted $0.87 EPS. Equities analysts predict that Colgate-Palmolive will post 3.75 EPS for the current year.

Colgate-Palmolive declared that its board has initiated a stock repurchase plan on Thursday, March 20th that authorizes the company to repurchase $5.00 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the company to repurchase up to 6.8% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are usually a sign that the company's board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.

Colgate-Palmolive Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 15th. Investors of record on Thursday, April 17th will be given a $0.52 dividend. This is a boost from Colgate-Palmolive's previous quarterly dividend of $0.50. This represents a $2.08 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.22%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, April 17th. Colgate-Palmolive's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 59.09%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms have recently commented on CL. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their target price on shares of Colgate-Palmolive from $99.00 to $95.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, April 11th. Royal Bank of Canada reiterated a "sector perform" rating and issued a $101.00 price objective on shares of Colgate-Palmolive in a report on Wednesday, January 29th. StockNews.com lowered Colgate-Palmolive from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 16th. Morgan Stanley reduced their price target on Colgate-Palmolive from $111.00 to $104.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a report on Monday, February 3rd. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus dropped their price objective on Colgate-Palmolive from $95.00 to $93.00 and set a "hold" rating on the stock in a report on Monday, February 3rd. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have assigned a hold rating and eleven have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $102.17.

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.