Unigestion Holding SA Sells 11,524 Shares of Colgate-Palmolive (NYSE:CL)

Unigestion Holding SA lowered its position in Colgate-Palmolive (NYSE:CL - Free Report) by 3.5% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 313,532 shares of the company's stock after selling 11,524 shares during the quarter. Colgate-Palmolive comprises 1.6% of Unigestion Holding SA's investment portfolio, making the stock its 20th largest holding. Unigestion Holding SA's holdings in Colgate-Palmolive were worth $28,503,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

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

Colgate-Palmolive Trading Up 2.8 %

CL traded up $2.54 on Friday, hitting $94.34. 2,114,556 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 4,571,384. 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 12 month low of $85.32 and a 12 month high of $109.30. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $90.33 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $92.72. The stock has a market capitalization of $76.52 billion, a PE ratio of 26.69, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.20 and a beta of 0.40.

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Colgate-Palmolive (NYSE:CL - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Friday, January 31st. The company reported $0.91 earnings per share (EPS) 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 previous year, the business earned $0.87 EPS. Sell-side analysts expect that Colgate-Palmolive will post 3.75 earnings per share for the current year.

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

Colgate-Palmolive Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 15th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, April 17th will be issued a dividend of $0.52 per share. 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 2.20%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, April 17th. Colgate-Palmolive's dividend payout ratio is currently 59.09%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts recently commented on CL shares. Barclays upped their target price on shares of Colgate-Palmolive from $83.00 to $89.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a report on Thursday, March 27th. Stifel Nicolaus dropped their price objective on Colgate-Palmolive from $95.00 to $93.00 and set a "hold" rating for the company in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. Morgan Stanley lowered their price target on Colgate-Palmolive from $111.00 to $104.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a report on Monday, February 3rd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut 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. Finally, UBS Group lowered their target price on shares of Colgate-Palmolive from $104.00 to $100.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have given a hold rating and twelve have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $101.83.

Colgate-Palmolive Company Profile

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.