Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank Reduces Holdings in Colgate-Palmolive (NYSE:CL)

Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank lowered its stake in shares of Colgate-Palmolive (NYSE:CL) by 42.0% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 147,207 shares of the company’s stock after selling 106,542 shares during the quarter. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank’s holdings in Colgate-Palmolive were worth $11,734,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. OFI Invest Asset Management purchased a new position in shares of Colgate-Palmolive during the third quarter worth about $25,000. Avion Wealth lifted its position in Colgate-Palmolive by 78.1% in the fourth quarter. Avion Wealth now owns 399 shares of the company’s stock valued at $32,000 after purchasing an additional 175 shares during the period. McGlone Suttner Wealth Management Inc. acquired a new stake in Colgate-Palmolive in the fourth quarter valued at about $34,000. Quarry LP lifted its position in Colgate-Palmolive by 48.2% in the second quarter. Quarry LP now owns 446 shares of the company’s stock valued at $34,000 after purchasing an additional 145 shares during the period. Finally, Kayne Anderson Rudnick Investment Management LLC lifted its position in Colgate-Palmolive by 142.0% in the third quarter. Kayne Anderson Rudnick Investment Management LLC now owns 496 shares of the company’s stock valued at $35,000 after purchasing an additional 291 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 80.41% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

CL has been the subject of a number of recent analyst reports. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price objective on shares of Colgate-Palmolive from $80.00 to $88.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Monday, January 29th. UBS Group lifted their price target on shares of Colgate-Palmolive from $93.00 to $95.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, January 29th. Stifel Nicolaus lifted their price target on shares of Colgate-Palmolive from $89.00 to $94.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 10th. StockNews.com downgraded shares of Colgate-Palmolive from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 20th. Finally, Morgan Stanley lifted their price target on shares of Colgate-Palmolive from $85.00 to $93.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, January 29th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and thirteen have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Colgate-Palmolive presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $89.50.

Colgate-Palmolive Stock Up 1.1 %

Shares of NYSE CL opened at $87.13 on Friday. Colgate-Palmolive has a 52-week low of $67.62 and a 52-week high of $90.37. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $87.10 and a 200-day moving average of $80.78. The stock has a market capitalization of $71.62 billion, a PE ratio of 31.34, a P/E/G ratio of 3.26 and a beta of 0.42. The company has a quick ratio of 0.71, a current ratio of 1.11 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 8.59.

Colgate-Palmolive (NYSE:CL) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Friday, January 26th. The company reported $0.87 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.85 by $0.02. Colgate-Palmolive had a net margin of 11.82% and a return on equity of 509.75%. The firm had revenue of $4.95 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.89 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $0.77 EPS. The firm’s revenue was up 6.9% on a year-over-year basis. On average, analysts anticipate that Colgate-Palmolive will post 3.49 EPS for the current year.

Colgate-Palmolive Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, May 15th. Investors of record on Monday, April 22nd will be given a dividend of $0.50 per share. This represents a $2.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.30%. This is a boost from Colgate-Palmolive’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.48. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, April 19th. Colgate-Palmolive’s dividend payout ratio is 69.06%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director C Martin Harris sold 2,760 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, January 31st. The shares were sold at an average price of $84.50, for a total transaction of $233,220.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now directly owns 19,272 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,628,484. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In other news, insider Jennifer Daniels sold 61,633 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $83.93, for a total value of $5,172,857.69. Following the sale, the insider now owns 57,948 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,863,575.64. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, Director C Martin Harris sold 2,760 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, January 31st. The shares were sold at an average price of $84.50, for a total transaction of $233,220.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director now owns 19,272 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,628,484. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders sold 232,371 shares of company stock valued at $19,505,099. Company insiders own 0.34% of the company’s stock.

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.