Tufton Capital Management Trims Stock Position in Colgate-Palmolive (NYSE:CL)

Tufton Capital Management decreased its position in Colgate-Palmolive (NYSE:CL) by 4.5% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 44,200 shares of the company’s stock after selling 2,063 shares during the quarter. Tufton Capital Management’s holdings in Colgate-Palmolive were worth $3,523,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in CL. Vest Financial LLC grew its stake in shares of Colgate-Palmolive by 25.1% during the fourth quarter. Vest Financial LLC now owns 370,071 shares of the company’s stock worth $29,498,000 after purchasing an additional 74,337 shares in the last quarter. Central Bank & Trust Co. raised its holdings in shares of Colgate-Palmolive by 22.1% in the fourth quarter. Central Bank & Trust Co. now owns 1,383 shares of the company’s stock valued at $110,000 after buying an additional 250 shares during the last quarter. Dynamic Advisor Solutions LLC raised its holdings in Colgate-Palmolive by 9.2% during the fourth quarter. Dynamic Advisor Solutions LLC now owns 10,808 shares of the company’s stock worth $864,000 after purchasing an additional 910 shares in the last quarter. Sarasin & Partners LLP raised its holdings in Colgate-Palmolive by 1.2% during the fourth quarter. Sarasin & Partners LLP now owns 4,053,634 shares of the company’s stock worth $323,115,000 after purchasing an additional 49,980 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Cornerstone Wealth Management LLC increased its holdings in Colgate-Palmolive by 2.5% in the fourth quarter. Cornerstone Wealth Management LLC now owns 7,170 shares of the company’s stock valued at $571,000 after buying an additional 172 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 80.41% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts have recently commented on the stock. Citigroup increased their price target on shares of Colgate-Palmolive from $95.00 to $100.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday. Raymond James upgraded shares of Colgate-Palmolive from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $91.00 target price on the stock in a research note on Monday, January 29th. The Goldman Sachs Group assumed coverage on shares of Colgate-Palmolive in a research note on Friday, March 1st. They issued a “buy” rating and a $93.00 target price on the stock. UBS Group boosted their price objective 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. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their target price on shares of Colgate-Palmolive from $88.00 to $90.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 18th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and thirteen have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Colgate-Palmolive currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $89.50.

Colgate-Palmolive Price Performance

CL stock traded down $0.19 on Thursday, hitting $86.56. 1,789,544 shares of the company’s stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 4,509,390. Colgate-Palmolive has a 1-year low of $67.62 and a 1-year high of $90.37. The stock has a market cap of $71.15 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 31.21, a P/E/G ratio of 3.24 and a beta of 0.42. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $86.97 and a 200-day moving average of $80.63. The company has a current ratio of 1.11, a quick ratio of 0.71 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 8.59.

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

Colgate-Palmolive Increases Dividend

The company 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 $0.50 dividend. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.31%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, April 19th. This is an increase from Colgate-Palmolive’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.48. Colgate-Palmolive’s dividend payout ratio is 69.06%.

Insider Activity at Colgate-Palmolive

In related news, Director C Martin Harris sold 2,760 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, January 31st. The shares were sold at an average price of $84.50, for a total value 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 sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. In related news, insider Jennifer Daniels sold 61,633 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on 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 completion of 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 legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, Director C Martin Harris sold 2,760 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred 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 transaction, 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 90 days, insiders sold 232,371 shares of company stock worth $19,505,099. 0.34% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Colgate-Palmolive 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.