United Capital Financial Advisors LLC Buys 27,884 Shares of Colgate-Palmolive (NYSE:CL)

United Capital Financial Advisors LLC raised its stake in shares of Colgate-Palmolive (NYSE:CL - Free Report) by 37.0% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 103,308 shares of the company's stock after acquiring an additional 27,884 shares during the period. United Capital Financial Advisors LLC's holdings in Colgate-Palmolive were worth $9,392,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

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

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts have recently weighed in on the company. Morgan Stanley dropped their price objective on Colgate-Palmolive from $111.00 to $104.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price target on Colgate-Palmolive from $83.00 to $88.00 and gave the stock an "underweight" rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 2nd. Stifel Nicolaus lowered their target price 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. Barclays cut their target price on Colgate-Palmolive from $89.00 to $86.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, April 11th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada restated a "sector perform" rating and issued a $101.00 price target on shares of Colgate-Palmolive in a research note on Wednesday, January 29th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have given a hold rating and eleven have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $102.17.

Colgate-Palmolive Price Performance

Colgate-Palmolive stock 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 4,590,228. Colgate-Palmolive has a 12-month low of $85.32 and a 12-month high of $109.30. The company has a market cap of $77.45 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 27.13, a PEG ratio of 4.20 and a beta of 0.40. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $91.31 and a two-hundred day moving average of $92.43. The company has a quick ratio of 0.58, a current ratio of 0.92 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 13.40.

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 (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates 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. Equities analysts forecast 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. Investors of record on Thursday, April 17th will be issued a dividend of $0.52 per share. This represents a $2.08 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.18%. 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 dividend payout ratio is presently 59.09%.

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 outstanding shares. This buyback authorization allows the company to reacquire up to 6.8% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback plans are typically an indication that the company's board believes its stock is undervalued.

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.