Wedbush Securities Inc. Boosts Position in Colgate-Palmolive (NYSE:CL)

Wedbush Securities Inc. raised its stake in Colgate-Palmolive (NYSE:CL) by 1.9% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 18,182 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 335 shares during the period. Wedbush Securities Inc.’s holdings in Colgate-Palmolive were worth $1,653,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

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

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms have recently commented on CL. Piper Sandler reduced their price target on shares of Colgate-Palmolive from $108.00 to $107.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Monday, March 31st. StockNews.com upgraded Colgate-Palmolive from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Friday. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price target on Colgate-Palmolive from $83.00 to $88.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a report on Wednesday. Stifel Nicolaus decreased their price objective 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. Finally, Morgan Stanley cut their target price on Colgate-Palmolive from $111.00 to $104.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have given a hold rating and twelve have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $102.06.

Colgate-Palmolive Stock Performance

Shares of CL opened at $91.75 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 13.40, a quick ratio of 0.58 and a current ratio of 0.92. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $90.27 and a two-hundred day moving average of $93.20. The stock has a market cap of $74.41 billion, a P/E ratio of 26.06, a P/E/G ratio of 4.20 and a beta of 0.40. Colgate-Palmolive has a one year low of $85.32 and a one year high of $109.30.

Colgate-Palmolive (NYSE:CL) last issued its earnings results on Friday, January 31st. The company reported $0.91 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 period last year, the company earned $0.87 EPS. As a group, research analysts predict that Colgate-Palmolive will post 3.75 EPS for the current year.

Colgate-Palmolive Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 15th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, April 17th will be paid a $0.52 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, April 17th. This represents a $2.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.27%. This is a positive change from Colgate-Palmolive’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.50. Colgate-Palmolive’s dividend payout ratio is presently 59.09%.

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 repurchase up to 6.8% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are usually an indication that the company’s board believes its shares are undervalued.

About Colgate-Palmolive

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.