Citigroup Boosts Colgate-Palmolive (NYSE:CL) Price Target to $100.00

Colgate-Palmolive (NYSE:CL) had its price target boosted by Citigroup from $95.00 to $100.00 in a report released on Tuesday, Benzinga reports. The firm currently has a buy rating on the stock.

Several other brokerages have also issued reports on CL. UBS Group upped their target price on Colgate-Palmolive from $93.00 to $95.00 and gave the stock a buy rating in a research note on Monday, January 29th. Evercore ISI upped their target price on Colgate-Palmolive from $90.00 to $96.00 and gave the stock an outperform rating in a research note on Monday, April 8th. Wells Fargo & Company upped their target price on Colgate-Palmolive from $80.00 to $88.00 and gave the stock an equal weight rating in a research note on Monday, January 29th. StockNews.com lowered Colgate-Palmolive from a strong-buy rating to a buy rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 20th. Finally, Barclays increased their price objective on Colgate-Palmolive from $82.00 to $84.00 and gave the company an equal weight rating in a research note on Friday, April 12th. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and thirteen have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of Moderate Buy and a consensus price target of $89.50.

Colgate-Palmolive Stock Down 0.1 %

CL stock opened at $86.70 on Tuesday. The company has a current ratio of 1.11, a quick ratio of 0.71 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 8.59. The company’s 50 day moving average is $87.02 and its 200 day moving average is $80.67. The stock has a market cap of $71.27 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 31.19, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.24 and a beta of 0.42. Colgate-Palmolive has a 1-year low of $67.62 and a 1-year high of $90.37.

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

Colgate-Palmolive Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, May 15th. Investors of record on Monday, April 22nd will be paid a $0.50 dividend. This is a positive change from Colgate-Palmolive’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.48. The ex-dividend date is Friday, April 19th. This represents a $2.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.31%. Colgate-Palmolive’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 71.94%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director C Martin Harris sold 2,760 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, January 31st. The stock was 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 of the company’s stock, valued at $1,628,484. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. In other Colgate-Palmolive news, Director C Martin Harris sold 2,760 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, January 31st. The stock was sold at an average price of $84.50, for a total value of $233,220.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 19,272 shares in the company, valued at $1,628,484. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, EVP Gregory Malcolm sold 8,930 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $85.35, for a total value of $762,175.50. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 8,043 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $686,470.05. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 232,371 shares of company stock valued at $19,505,099 over the last quarter. 0.34% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Colgate-Palmolive

Institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. OFI Invest Asset Management bought a new position in Colgate-Palmolive in the third quarter worth $25,000. Union Savings Bank increased its holdings in shares of Colgate-Palmolive by 76.6% during the fourth quarter. Union Savings Bank now owns 309 shares of the company’s stock valued at $25,000 after acquiring an additional 134 shares in the last quarter. Garner Asset Management Corp bought a new position in shares of Colgate-Palmolive during the fourth quarter valued at $30,000. Avion Wealth increased its holdings in shares of Colgate-Palmolive by 78.1% during the fourth quarter. Avion Wealth now owns 399 shares of the company’s stock valued at $32,000 after acquiring an additional 175 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Atlantic Edge Private Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Colgate-Palmolive during the fourth quarter valued at $32,000. Institutional investors own 80.41% of the company’s stock.

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.