B. Metzler seel. Sohn & Co. AG Acquires 17,267 Shares of Colgate-Palmolive (NYSE:CL)

B. Metzler seel. Sohn & Co. AG lifted its stake in shares of Colgate-Palmolive (NYSE:CL) by 4.6% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 395,151 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 17,267 shares during the quarter. B. Metzler seel. Sohn & Co. AG’s holdings in Colgate-Palmolive were worth $35,909,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

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

Colgate-Palmolive Stock Down 0.5 %

Shares of CL stock opened at $92.73 on Monday. The stock’s fifty day moving average price is $89.69 and its 200 day moving average price is $93.52. Colgate-Palmolive has a 1-year low of $85.32 and a 1-year high of $109.30. The company has a market cap of $75.25 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 26.34, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.20 and a beta of 0.40. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 13.40, a current ratio of 0.92 and a quick ratio of 0.58.

Colgate-Palmolive (NYSE:CL) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Friday, January 31st. The company reported $0.91 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating 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 quarter in the prior year, the company earned $0.87 EPS. On average, research analysts expect that Colgate-Palmolive will post 3.75 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Colgate-Palmolive announced that its board has approved a stock repurchase plan on Thursday, March 20th that allows the company to repurchase $5.00 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization allows the company to purchase up to 6.8% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are often a sign that the company’s board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

Colgate-Palmolive Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced 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 is an increase from Colgate-Palmolive’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.50. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, April 17th. This represents a $2.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.24%. Colgate-Palmolive’s payout ratio is 59.09%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms have weighed in on CL. UBS Group reduced their price objective on Colgate-Palmolive from $104.00 to $100.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. Morgan Stanley decreased their price target on shares of Colgate-Palmolive from $111.00 to $104.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. Raymond James reissued an “outperform” rating and issued a $105.00 price objective (down from $110.00) on shares of Colgate-Palmolive in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. TD Cowen dropped their price objective on shares of Colgate-Palmolive from $110.00 to $100.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, January 8th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price target on Colgate-Palmolive from $97.00 to $99.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, March 14th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have assigned a hold rating and eleven have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $102.06.

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.