MetLife Investment Management LLC Grows Position in Colgate-Palmolive (NYSE:CL)

MetLife Investment Management LLC increased its stake in shares of Colgate-Palmolive (NYSE:CL - Free Report) by 1.3% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 235,876 shares of the company's stock after purchasing an additional 3,134 shares during the quarter. MetLife Investment Management LLC's holdings in Colgate-Palmolive were worth $21,443,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of CL. Natixis increased its position in Colgate-Palmolive by 25.7% during the 4th quarter. Natixis now owns 190,167 shares of the company's stock worth $17,288,000 after purchasing an additional 38,829 shares during the period. Norinchukin Bank The boosted its stake in shares of Colgate-Palmolive by 10.1% in the fourth quarter. Norinchukin Bank The now owns 37,426 shares of the company's stock valued at $3,402,000 after buying an additional 3,433 shares in the last quarter. BI Asset Management Fondsmaeglerselskab A S boosted its stake in shares of Colgate-Palmolive by 70.1% in the fourth quarter. BI Asset Management Fondsmaeglerselskab A S now owns 389,020 shares of the company's stock valued at $35,366,000 after buying an additional 160,340 shares in the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP grew its holdings in Colgate-Palmolive by 5.9% during the fourth quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 3,978,685 shares of the company's stock worth $361,700,000 after acquiring an additional 220,326 shares during the period. Finally, Forum Financial Management LP raised its position in Colgate-Palmolive by 24.6% in the fourth quarter. Forum Financial Management LP now owns 5,513 shares of the company's stock worth $501,000 after acquiring an additional 1,088 shares in the last quarter. 80.41% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

CL has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. Stifel Nicolaus lowered their price target on shares of Colgate-Palmolive from $95.00 to $93.00 and set a "hold" rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. UBS Group upped their target price on shares of Colgate-Palmolive from $105.00 to $109.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, April 17th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price target on shares of Colgate-Palmolive from $83.00 to $88.00 and gave the company an "underweight" rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 2nd. Barclays lowered their price target on Colgate-Palmolive from $89.00 to $86.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a report on Friday, April 11th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price objective on Colgate-Palmolive from $99.00 to $95.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a report on Friday, April 11th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have issued a hold rating and eleven have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Colgate-Palmolive presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $102.17.

Colgate-Palmolive Trading Down 2.0 %

Shares of Colgate-Palmolive stock traded down $1.92 during trading hours on Wednesday, reaching $93.89. 8,496,316 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 4,620,018. Colgate-Palmolive has a 52-week low of $85.32 and a 52-week high of $109.30. The company has a fifty day moving average of $91.63 and a 200-day moving average of $92.30. The company has a current ratio of 0.92, a quick ratio of 0.58 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 13.40. The firm has a market capitalization of $76.15 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 26.67, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.20 and a beta of 0.40.

Colgate-Palmolive (NYSE:CL - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Friday, January 31st. The company reported $0.91 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.90 by $0.01. Colgate-Palmolive had a return on equity of 477.77% and a net margin of 14.38%. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $0.87 EPS. Sell-side analysts forecast that Colgate-Palmolive will post 3.75 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Colgate-Palmolive declared that its Board of Directors has authorized a share buyback plan 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 stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are generally an indication that the company's leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

Colgate-Palmolive Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 15th. Investors of record on Thursday, April 17th will be issued a $0.52 dividend. This represents a $2.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.22%. This is an increase from Colgate-Palmolive's previous quarterly dividend of $0.50. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, April 17th. Colgate-Palmolive's payout ratio is presently 59.09%.

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.