Laurel Wealth Advisors LLC Has $1.09 Million Holdings in Colgate-Palmolive (NYSE:CL)

Laurel Wealth Advisors LLC cut its holdings in Colgate-Palmolive (NYSE:CL) by 13.8% during the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 13,697 shares of the company’s stock after selling 2,195 shares during the quarter. Laurel Wealth Advisors LLC’s holdings in Colgate-Palmolive were worth $1,092,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. OFI Invest Asset Management bought a new position in Colgate-Palmolive in the third quarter valued at about $25,000. Union Savings Bank raised its position in Colgate-Palmolive by 76.6% in the fourth quarter. Union Savings Bank now owns 309 shares of the company’s stock valued at $25,000 after purchasing an additional 134 shares during the last quarter. Avion Wealth raised 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 last quarter. Atlantic Edge Private Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in Colgate-Palmolive in the fourth quarter valued at about $32,000. Finally, McGlone Suttner Wealth Management Inc. bought a new position in Colgate-Palmolive in the fourth quarter valued at about $34,000. 80.41% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Colgate-Palmolive Trading Up 1.9 %

CL stock traded up $1.72 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $91.01. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 7,541,541 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,968,951. 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 has a 12 month low of $67.62 and a 12 month high of $92.25. The business’s 50 day moving average price is $87.66 and its 200 day moving average price is $81.46. The company has a market cap of $74.81 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 32.74, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.35 and a beta of 0.42.

Colgate-Palmolive (NYSE:CL) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Friday, April 26th. The company reported $0.86 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.82 by $0.04. Colgate-Palmolive had a return on equity of 509.75% and a net margin of 11.82%. The firm had revenue of $5.07 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.96 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $0.73 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 6.2% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities research analysts predict that Colgate-Palmolive will post 3.5 EPS for the current year.

Colgate-Palmolive Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, May 15th. Shareholders of record on Monday, April 22nd will be paid a $0.50 dividend. This represents a $2.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.20%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, April 19th. This is a boost from Colgate-Palmolive’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.48. Colgate-Palmolive’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 71.94%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Colgate-Palmolive

In related news, Director C Martin Harris sold 2,760 shares of Colgate-Palmolive stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, January 31st. The stock was sold at an average price of $84.50, for a total transaction of $233,220.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 19,272 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,628,484. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. In related news, EVP Gregory Malcolm sold 8,930 shares of Colgate-Palmolive stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $85.35, for a total transaction of $762,175.50. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 8,043 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $686,470.05. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, Director C Martin Harris sold 2,760 shares of Colgate-Palmolive 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 transaction, the director now directly owns 19,272 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,628,484. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 232,371 shares of company stock valued at $19,505,099. Company insiders own 0.34% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts have commented on CL shares. UBS Group increased their target price on Colgate-Palmolive from $93.00 to $95.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, January 29th. Raymond James upgraded Colgate-Palmolive from a “market perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $91.00 price objective for the company in a research report on Monday, January 29th. StockNews.com downgraded Colgate-Palmolive from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 20th. Morgan Stanley raised their price objective on Colgate-Palmolive from $85.00 to $93.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, January 29th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price objective on Colgate-Palmolive from $88.00 to $90.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 18th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and thirteen have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $89.50.

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.