Colgate-Palmolive (NYSE:CL) Position Trimmed by Synovus Financial Corp

Synovus Financial Corp reduced its stake in shares of Colgate-Palmolive (NYSE:CL - Free Report) by 12.8% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 27,446 shares of the company's stock after selling 4,021 shares during the period. Synovus Financial Corp's holdings in Colgate-Palmolive were worth $2,495,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other large investors have also made changes to their positions in CL. Barclays PLC raised its position in shares of Colgate-Palmolive by 38.7% in the third quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 7,644,189 shares of the company's stock valued at $793,542,000 after buying an additional 2,132,747 shares during the last quarter. M&T Bank Corp lifted its stake in shares of Colgate-Palmolive by 8.2% during the 3rd quarter. M&T Bank Corp now owns 288,050 shares of the company's stock worth $29,903,000 after purchasing an additional 21,862 shares during the period. Te Ahumairangi Investment Management Ltd boosted its holdings in shares of Colgate-Palmolive by 2.5% during the third quarter. Te Ahumairangi Investment Management Ltd now owns 43,957 shares of the company's stock worth $4,537,000 after purchasing an additional 1,060 shares during the last quarter. Chelsea Counsel Co. grew its position in shares of Colgate-Palmolive by 10.0% in the third quarter. Chelsea Counsel Co. now owns 5,500 shares of the company's stock valued at $571,000 after purchasing an additional 500 shares during the period. Finally, Fulcrum Equity Management increased its stake in Colgate-Palmolive by 3.0% in the third quarter. Fulcrum Equity Management now owns 5,280 shares of the company's stock valued at $548,000 after purchasing an additional 153 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 80.41% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research firms recently issued reports on CL. Piper Sandler lowered their target price on shares of Colgate-Palmolive from $108.00 to $107.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a report on Monday, March 31st. UBS Group raised their target price on Colgate-Palmolive from $105.00 to $109.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday. 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. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price target on shares of Colgate-Palmolive from $83.00 to $88.00 and gave the company an "underweight" rating in a report on Wednesday, April 2nd. Finally, Morgan Stanley dropped their price objective on Colgate-Palmolive from $111.00 to $104.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a report on Monday, February 3rd. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have given a hold rating and eleven have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Colgate-Palmolive presently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $102.17.

Colgate-Palmolive Stock Performance

Shares of CL traded up $2.00 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $95.49. 7,029,569 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 4,591,385. Colgate-Palmolive has a 12 month low of $85.32 and a 12 month high of $109.30. The stock has a market capitalization of $77.45 billion, a P/E ratio of 27.13, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.20 and a beta of 0.40. The business's 50-day moving average price is $91.15 and its 200-day moving average price is $92.48. 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 (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, topping 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 company earned $0.87 earnings per share. Equities analysts predict that Colgate-Palmolive will post 3.75 earnings per share for the current year.

Colgate-Palmolive Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared 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 of this dividend is Thursday, April 17th. This is a boost from Colgate-Palmolive's previous quarterly dividend of $0.50. This represents a $2.08 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.18%. Colgate-Palmolive's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 59.09%.

Colgate-Palmolive declared that its Board of Directors has authorized a stock buyback plan on Thursday, March 20th that permits the company to buyback $5.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization permits the company to reacquire up to 6.8% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback plans are typically a sign that the company's leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

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.