LGT Group Foundation Sells 49,017 Shares of Colgate-Palmolive (NYSE:CL)

LGT Group Foundation lessened its stake in Colgate-Palmolive (NYSE:CL) by 21.4% in the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 180,524 shares of the company’s stock after selling 49,017 shares during the period. LGT Group Foundation’s holdings in Colgate-Palmolive were worth $17,518,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Choreo LLC lifted its position in Colgate-Palmolive by 200.8% during the 2nd quarter. Choreo LLC now owns 22,489 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,153,000 after buying an additional 15,013 shares in the last quarter. Prudential PLC lifted its holdings in Colgate-Palmolive by 0.5% during the 2nd quarter. Prudential PLC now owns 89,299 shares of the company’s stock worth $8,666,000 after buying an additional 423 shares in the last quarter. Quest Partners LLC boosted its position in Colgate-Palmolive by 155.2% in the 2nd quarter. Quest Partners LLC now owns 18,763 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,821,000 after buying an additional 11,410 shares during the last quarter. Triasima Portfolio Management inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Colgate-Palmolive in the 2nd quarter valued at $1,359,000. Finally, Ballentine Partners LLC raised its position in shares of Colgate-Palmolive by 9.6% during the second quarter. Ballentine Partners LLC now owns 10,229 shares of the company’s stock worth $993,000 after acquiring an additional 893 shares during the last quarter. 80.41% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities research analysts recently commented on the company. UBS Group upped their price objective on Colgate-Palmolive from $119.00 to $122.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, September 4th. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price objective on shares of Colgate-Palmolive from $92.00 to $97.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 10th. Evercore ISI increased their target price on shares of Colgate-Palmolive from $100.00 to $106.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, July 18th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft lowered shares of Colgate-Palmolive from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and boosted their price target for the company from $107.00 to $109.00 in a report on Monday. Finally, Hsbc Global Res downgraded Colgate-Palmolive from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, July 26th. Nine equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and thirteen have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Colgate-Palmolive currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $102.63.

Colgate-Palmolive Stock Performance

Shares of CL traded down $1.23 during midday trading on Monday, reaching $106.63. 772,489 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 4,306,362. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $101.07 and its 200 day simple moving average is $94.58. The company has a market cap of $87.13 billion, a P/E ratio of 34.13, a PEG ratio of 3.78 and a beta of 0.40. Colgate-Palmolive has a twelve month low of $67.62 and a twelve month high of $109.30. The company has a quick ratio of 0.70, a current ratio of 1.06 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 16.90.

Colgate-Palmolive (NYSE:CL) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Friday, July 26th. The company reported $0.91 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.87 by $0.04. Colgate-Palmolive had a return on equity of 470.19% and a net margin of 14.21%. The business had revenue of $5.06 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $0.77 earnings per share. Colgate-Palmolive’s revenue for the quarter was up 4.9% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, sell-side analysts expect that Colgate-Palmolive will post 3.57 earnings per share for the current year.

Colgate-Palmolive Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, August 15th. Stockholders of record on Friday, July 19th were issued a dividend of $0.50 per share. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.88%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, July 19th. Colgate-Palmolive’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 63.29%.

Insider Activity

In other Colgate-Palmolive news, insider Sally Massey sold 15,850 shares of Colgate-Palmolive stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, August 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $103.28, for a total transaction of $1,636,988.00. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 13,942 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,439,929.76. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. In other news, EVP Gregory Malcolm sold 10,533 shares of Colgate-Palmolive stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, August 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $103.10, for a total value of $1,085,952.30. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 10,377 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,069,868.70. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, insider Sally Massey sold 15,850 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, August 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $103.28, for a total value of $1,636,988.00. Following the sale, the insider now owns 13,942 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,439,929.76. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 43,490 shares of company stock valued at $4,486,063 over the last quarter. 0.34% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

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.